TWENTY LESSONS 

ON 

GOVERNMENT 

STELLA C. STIMSON 


PUBLISHED BY 


WOMANS CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION 
OF INDIANA 
UPLAND, INDIANA 






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TWENTY LESSONS 

ON 

GOVERNMENT 


TEN LESSONS ON INDIANA GOVERNMENT 
TEN LESSONS ON NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 


“Knowledge is Power.” 

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” 

HOSEA 4:6. 


PREPARED BY THE CITIZENSHIP DEPARTMENT 
OF THE 

WOMANS CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION 
OF INDIANA 

STELLA C. STIMSON, Superintendent 


VIQUESN EY 








COPYRIGHTED 1919 BY S. C. STIMSON 



V 

\ 


ERRATA. 

Second paragraph on page 59 should read as follows: 

Conventions are “called” in succession by chairman, beginning with the 
highest unit, the national, and ending with the precinct. They are held also 
in succession, but in reverse order to the “calls” for they begin in the precinct 
primary or “caucus” in the spring and end in the great national conventions 
held in June or July. In these conventions the accredited delegates from lower 
political units (1) nominate the officers for government of that unit and (2) 
choose delegates for the next higher convention, until the national is reached 
in which convention the President and Vice-President is nominated and the 
“platform” takes final verbal shape. 


JAN -9 1920 





FOREWORD 


This course of lessons, on state and Federal government, is intended 
for the use of the women of an organization, mostly homemakers, soon to be 
voters, and therefore personally responsible as never before for the government 
of their municipality, county, state and nation. The Woman’s Christian Tem¬ 
perance Union is an organization of women which has heretofore so recognized 
Christian responsibility that it has literally blazed the way by “education, agi¬ 
tation and legislation” for most of the human betterment reforms of the present 
generation. It believes the New Testament to be the moral constitution of mod¬ 
ern society, whose principles should apply to all the social relations of life, 
which, under America’s and Indiana’s form of government, are determined by 
politics. With the added and recognized power of the ballot, it is believed that 
organized womanhood will try to be more intelligent, conscientious and cou¬ 
rageous as voters, than have been many of the men voters, who generally admit 
that politics, the science of government, has not today, in America, the honorable 
standing of other sciences. 

History is being made so rapidly in these days of 1919, that before the 
printers’ ink is dry something in government may be changed; but basic facts 
must be studied and understood before there can be effective participation in 
government. This means a thinkable and talkable knowledge of the constitu¬ 
tions of Indiana and of the United States. 

Women must know also that Congress at Washington is constantly meeting 
new conditions by enacting new or changing existing Federal statutes, and 
that Indiana’s General Assembly, every two years, adds a new volume to the 
number of volumes of state statutes. 

Constitutions and statutes, however, are only words which men and women 
must obey, put into action, interpret in deeds, for “government is a living, 
doing process,” while words are only symbols of thought. To many women, 
the most deplorable and obvious fact in present-day American government, 
local, state and national, is the inability of the sworn officers of government to 
do their duty, because prevented by party expediency. From village constable 
to the President of the United States, political party expediency, not fidelity to 
duty as prescribed by law, is often the first consideration. Even the children 
of the municipalities know early in life that policemen make some, not all, obey 
the law, and that the policemen themselves often cannot, are not permitted by 
those over them, to do their duty. Until we work out a better democracy, there 
must be political parties with their powerful organizations and leaders. If 
party leaders, a few men, dictate legislation, and often influence the interpre¬ 
tation and execution of both constitutional and statutory law—and no well- 
informed student of government questions this fact—party leaders should be 
chosen by the voters from the best citizenship. 

In Indiana, these powerful party leaders are elected, practically, at the 
May Primary, when the candidates for government offices are nominated for 
the following November elections. 

Hence, women must study, not only the constitutions and statutes under 
which they and their children live, but they must with even more intelligence, 
energy and purpose talk and work for men of the highest integrity and honesty 
as chairmen of the different units of their political party organizations. Indiana 
women who feel their governmental responsibility should investigate and know 
not only the personal character, but also the standards of political conduct of 
their precinct committeeman, county, district and state chairmen. Under these 
men, the elections are conducted. The precinct committeeman has helped to 
elect and therefore has power, he thinks, and they think, over local officers, 
mayor, councilmen and courts. The power of county and district chairmen 
extends to the General Assembly, the Governor and sometimes to the courts, 
and is in evidence at Washington, unless there is a wide-awake, telegram, pos¬ 
tal or petition-sending constituency at home. 

This all means, for Indiana women, work in the early months of the year, 
when plans are being made for the primaries in May; and it means, too, work 
in the early months of three out of every four years, with the Presidential jmar 
work especially heavy, for many officers of government are elected that year. 
The September and October registration days, one each, require work also, for 
voters must register before voting. 

By means of a question form digest, the Primary Law of Indiana was 
studied by the temperance Unions of the state in 1918, as was the state constitu- 


tion the previous year, 1917; hence, this part of the work will not be new to 
many women. 

These short lessons in government are prepared not only for study and dis¬ 
cussion in the bi-monthly meetings of the Unions, but also for use at home with 
the members of the family. 

Americanization and civics will be studied and discussed all over the 
United States by students in schools and colleges, as well as by the members 
of all women organizations. 

A copy in pamphlet form of the Indiana and Federal Constitutions should 
be kept on every living room table. 

Members of the Unions should go to the best law library in their commu¬ 
nity and see, at least, the volumes of the state statutes—Burns Revised with 
supplement—and also the separate Assembly Acts volumes, remembering while 
looking at the statutes that all of them must agree in principle with the smali- 
in-size state constitution on the living room table at home. They should see, 
too, the rows and rows of volumes of “common law” decisions, “common law,” 
by the judgment of mankind, being what is, always has been and always will be 
right, without any framing of words into a law or statute by a legislative body 
Right is right and wrong is wrong without definition by Legislature. If possi¬ 
ble, they should see, too, the volumes of Federal-Congress made-statutes, and 
the Supreme Court Reports of both the State and the United States. These can 
be seen at Indianapolis in the law library near the Supreme Courtroom in the 
State House, and in the Library at the Federal Postoffice building, where the 
United States District Court for Indiana is held. See both Supreme and Fed¬ 
eral Courtrooms, if possible. 

The Unions, in a body, should attend town and city council meetings, 
county commissioners’ sessions—the first Monday of each month, usually at 
courthouse; should go to the courts—city, Justice of the Peace, Circuit, Supe¬ 
rior, if there is one in county, the Probate, Criminal and Juvenile Courts in 
Indianapolis—in other places, for the most part, the Circuit Court holds ses¬ 
sions for probate and juvenile affairs. These, with the Federal Court at Indian¬ 
apolis, are trial courts and always interesting to intelligent women. 

School and park board meetings should be attended also. 

White Ribboners are more familiar with state law-making procedure than 
with the other departments of state government, because for years they have 
been helping in the enactment of moral legislation. It is now time to pay close 
attention to the enforcement of law, which depends upon local officials and the 
courts. See them all in action. Each lesson is intended to furnish a number of 
topics for discussion, and information can be obtained from many sources other 
than those given in the lessons. 

Terre Haute, Ind., July 30, 1919. 



I 



AUTHORITIES 

Indiana Constitution and the Constitution of the United States. 

Indiana Year Book. 

Acts of the General Assembly, 1915 and 1917, for Indiana Primary Law. 

Acts of the General Assembly, 1919. 

Forms and Functions of American Government. Reed. Used in Indiana 
High Schools. 

Government in the United States. Garner. 

Our America. The Elements of Civics. Lapp. 

American Government and Politics. Beard. 

The Woman Voter’s Manual. Shuler. 

The Citizen and the Republic. Woodburn and Moran. 

The American Commonwealth. Bryce, 

The American Year Book. Appleton. 

Periodicals. 

The American Political Science Review. 

The Political Science Quarterly. 

The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 

The Indiana Year Book “is a Manual of State Government,” provided for by 
the General Assembly of 1917. The 1918 volume, the latest, covers the fiscal 
year ending September 30, 1918. Twenty thousand (20,000) have been printed, 
and copies may be obtained free of charge at the Public Libraries in the large 
cities of the state, or by applying in person or by mail to the Legislative Refer¬ 
ence Bureau, State House, Indianapolis. The 1919 volume will probably be 
ready early in the year 1920. Invaluable for definite knowledge concerning 
Indiana. 

The Indiana Constitution in pamphlet form may be obtained from the Bureau 
of Legislative Reference. Several thousand copies were printed in 1917. The 
Woman’s Christian Temperance Union used them in their study before the Con¬ 
stitutional Convention Bill was declared unconstitutional in August, 1917. The 
Constitution is printed also in the New Constitution Text Book, many copies of 
which were purchased and used by the Unions in the same year. The Constitu¬ 
tion is found also in all Indiana editions of works on Civics and Government. 

SUGGESTIONS FOR MEETINGS 

1. Papers, short, not over, but under, five minutes, may be prepared in 
advance for time-limited discussion, that each member may take part. 

2. Roll call may be answered with quotation from state or Federal Con¬ 
stitution, or with number and name of important bills pending in Congress. 

3. Scrap books. Newspaper clippings. Learn to use scissors and paste 
tube. Compare books and award prize for best. 

4. Question box. Questions to be read, taken home and answered at next 
meeting. 

5. Question “bee.” Drill on names of officials of government, on election 
procedure, on State Boards and Commissions, on Federal Departments of Gov¬ 
ernment. 

FOR DISCUSSION 

1. Need of best citizenship in party organization from precinct commit¬ 
teeman to state chairman, inclusive. 

2. Need of qualifications for all office-holders, beginning with precinct 
committeemen, Justices of the Peace, Township Trustees. 

3. Necessity for “backing up” the law-abiding and law-enforcing officials. 
Men with the best intentions are often elected to office, then left to the com¬ 
panionship of the worst citizenship of the state, county and municipality. 

4. The finances of the state, Chaps. 1, 58 and 62 of the 1919 acts and the 
Auditor’s Report in the 1918 Year Book, vitally important. 

5. The finances of the County, Township, Town or City of residence. Fig¬ 
ures. Per inhabitant cost. 

6. The enforcement of sanitary ordinances and laws. 

7. Recreation for young people. 

8. Physical Education in the Schools. 

9. The value of Beauty in municipal buildings, dwellings, streets and 
parks. 

10. Aliens in residence, town or city and county. 


DEFINITIONS 


Justice: 
Government: 


Kinds of 
Government: 

Constitution: 

Statute: 


Common Law: 


“Regulator in government of human affairs.” 

Always existed, even before laws were made. 

“Organization—Machinery—by which the purposes of a 
state are formulated and executed.” 

“Co-operative enterprise for welfare and best interest of 
the whole people.” 

“A going concern.” Not merely a group of rules, but also 
a group of persons. 

1. Monarchy—Rule of one. (1. Absolute. 2. Limited.) 

2. Oligarchy—Rule of few. 

3. Democracy—Rule of the many. 

System of fundamental principles, maxims, laws or rules. 
A small written document. Called also Basic or Organic 
Law. 

Law made by Congress or a State Legislature. 

United States Statutes in a number of volumes. 

Indiana Statutes compiled in four large volumes with sup¬ 
plement, and also in separate volumes, each of which arc 
acts of the General Assembly of the years in which they 
were held. 

Common or case law is the ancient customs, unwritten in 
statute, but established and defined by the courts in the 
trial of cases. It is found in Court Records and Judicial 
Decisions of courts over the entire United States, hundreds 
of volumes. 


Ordinances: Laws made by city councils for City Government. 

Politics: The science of government. Theory. 

Practical Politics: Actual procedure in election of officers and in the direc¬ 
tion of the activities of officers of government in the mak¬ 
ing, interpretation and especially the execution of laws. 


Definition of some terms used in Practical Politics (political slang): 
Gerrymander: Manipulation of boundaries of state senatorial and state 

representative districts, also Congressional districts, to 
insure party success at the polls. 


Filibustering: 


Logrolling: 


Subterranean 
Connection: 


Legislative maneuvers to hinder, delay or prevent action 
on bills. Long, unnecessary speeches in the United States 
Senate. Roll call of the 435 Congressmen on unimportant 
steps of procedure in the House. 

Co-operation, by trading of votes in Congress, to secure 
appropriations of public money—termed “pork barrel”— 
for local “constituency” purposes, without regard to pub¬ 
lic good. 

Communication between subordinates for ulterior pur¬ 
poses. 


6 


TEN LESSONS ON INDIANA GOVERNMENT 


LESSON ONE 
The Constitution of Indiana 

History, Attempts for Amendment, for a New Constitution, 
Present Form, Comparison with Federal, and the “Pending” Amend¬ 
ments. 

The Constitution of Indiana resembles the Constitution of the 
United States as closely as a state document can resemble a Federal. 
Indiana’s amendment provision is, however, more difficult. 

The first constitution, drawn up under Indiana’s “Constitu¬ 
tional Elm” at Corydon in June, 1816, was outgrown by 1850, and a 
new one was needed. A convention was assembled at Indianapolis 
on October 7, 1850, and when it adjourned on February 10, 1851, a 
new basic law was ready for the consideration of the people. Sev¬ 
eral months later, on August 4, 1851, the election was held, the con¬ 
stitution ratified, and it became effective on November 1 of the same 
year. 

Indiana has changed much in the 68 years since 1851, and the 
inability of the constitution to let itself be changed to meet the needs 
of the state has caused not a little trouble. By holding special elec¬ 
tions, one section was changed in 1873, and nine others in 1881, “all 
comparatively unimportant.” Since 1881, “there have been no less 
than 154 separate and distinct attempts at amendment, including 
over 449 separate proposals, without success in a single instance.” 
Only one proposal ever got to the people, the lawyers’ qualifications 
section (21 of Art. VII). This was defeated three times, 1900, 1906, 
1910, because it did not receive a majority of the votes “of the elec¬ 
tors of the state,” though it did receive each time a large majority 
of votes cast “thereon.” 

A number of attempts have been made to get a new consti¬ 
tution. One governor attempted to make one himself, several gov¬ 
ernors have urged a constitutional convention, a referendum failed 
in 1914, the people of the state did not understand its voting require¬ 
ments. The General Assembly of 1917 made provision for a con¬ 
vention and the election of its delegate members. The women of 
the state were much interested, studied the constitution carefully, 
helped in the registration of voters for the election of delegates; 
but in August the Supreme Court decided that the people of the state, 
not their representatives in the General Assembly, must vote 
whether or not a constitutional convention should be called. 

This decision so discouraged Indiana statesmen that they decided 
to try again the “amendment” plan, though declared for many years 
practically impossible. Nevertheless, the 1919 Assembly went 
bravely to work, framed, passed and referred to the next—1921— 
Assembly sixteen separate amendments. It is earnestly hoped they 
will survive the next Assembly, and be soon thereafter submitted 
to the people. There will be no general election until 1922, as city 
elections are held in 1921. A special election for the amendments 
may be called, and if the women of the state can vote—by the grace 
of the Federal amendment—there is hope for the ratification of 

7 



most, if not all, of them. The amendments to the amendment Arti¬ 
cle (XVI.) will surely be ratified. 

There is no question but that the growth of the state has been 
retarded by its constitution. A study of Ohio on the east and Illi¬ 
nois on the west is convincing of this fact. The growth of the state 
would have been even more retarded had there not been many nec¬ 
essary, but dangerous, legislative, executive and judicial evasions 
of its provisions. Th thoughtful women of Indiana want its basic 
law able to bear the closest inspection of children and aliens. When 
officers of the government, especially judges, are obliged to use one 
part of the constitution and disregard another, disrespect for the 
whole and for all law is bred, especially among those least capable of 
sound judgment. 

Indiana’s constitution consists of a preamble and sixteen Arti¬ 
cles. The first section of the first Article is taken from the Declara¬ 
tion of Independence, and in the following sections of this Article 
(the Bill of Rights) all those enumerated in the Federal document 
are found; some, such as religious liberty and freedom of speech and 
press, are elaborated, and a few are verbatim. In addition, the Ordi¬ 
nances of 1787, the Magna Charta, and the English Bill of Rights 
were drawn upon before the Article was satisfactory to its framers. 

The second Article treats of suffrage and elections, excluding 
women and including aliens who have declared their intention of 
becoming citizens. It provides also for “registration of all persons 
entitled to vote.” Two amendments to this Article are pending, 
with two changes in one amendment, three changes in all. 

The next four Articles provide for the distribution of the pow¬ 
ers of Government, and for the Legislative, Executive and Judicial 
departments. Three amendments are pending for Article IV, one 
for Article V, two for Article VI, three for Article VII. 

Education, state institutions, finance, corporations, the militia, 
political and municipal corporations, boundaries, miscellaneous and 
amendments are the subjects of the remaining Articles. Amend¬ 
ments are pending on Articles VIII, X, XII, XV, XVI. 

In comparison with Federal, the Indiana is a longer document, 
its Bill of Rights is given the greatest possible prominence, the 
Governor’s power is much more limited than the President’s, and 
the final vote on the enactment of laws differs somewhat. 

A majority vote of the Indiana Assembly can enact a bill vetoed 
by the Governor into law. (Sec. 14, Art. V.) 

A two-thirds roll call majority vote of Congress is necessary to 
pass a bill over the President’s veto. (U. S. Const., Sec. 7, Art. I.) 

A yea and nay roll call is not used in Congress, unless one-fifth 
of the members present demand it, excepting always for vetoed 
bills, which require a roll call. (U. S. Secs. 5, 7, Art I.) 

The Indiana constitution is a democratic document, and there¬ 
fore requires for the good government of the state a genuine partici¬ 
pation of its citizenship in its politics. This requires both intelli¬ 
gence and courage. 

The “pending amendments” passed by the 1919 Assembly, and 
to be voted upon the second time by the 1921 Assembly, are as fol¬ 
lows (See 1919 Acts, Chaps. 238-241, 245-253, 256, 257) : 

1. Sec. 2, Art. XV. No term or salary increase during term 
for which elected. 


8 


2. Sec. 21, Art. VII. General Assembly to provide qualifica¬ 
tions tor lawyers. 

3. Sec. 2, Art. VI. Some county officers’ terms from two to 
four years. 

4. Sec. 11, Art. VII. Prosecuting Attorneys’ terms from two 
to four years. 

5. Sec. 1, Art. XII. Strikes out the word “white” in militia 
force. 

6. Sec. 7, Art. VII. Clerk of the Supreme Court to be selected 
by legislative provision instead of by election by the people of the 
state. 

7. Sec. 14, Art. II. Classification of counties, townships and 
municipalities for registration purposes. 

8. Sec. 8, a new one to Art. X. Will provide for income taxes. 

9. Secs. 1 and 2, Art. XVI. “Voters thereon” to ratify amend¬ 
ments to the constitution. Additional amendments may be pro¬ 
posed while others are pending. 

10. Sec. 14, Art. V. Permits Governor to veto item or items 
in appropriation bills. 

11. Sec. 8, Art. VIII. Appointment instead of election of 
State Superintendent of Public Instruction. 

12. Sec. 1, Art. VI. Some state officers’ terms from two to 
four years. 

13. Sec. 1, Art. X. A new system of taxation. 

14. New Sec. 31, Art. IV. Executive budget for state ex¬ 
penses. 

15. Sec. 2, Art. II. Omits the word ‘male,” thus permitting 
women to vote, and the last half of section, thus eliminating the 
alien vote. 

16. Secs. 4, 5, Art. IV. Census of voters instead of “male 
inhabitants over 21” for determining number and apportionment of 
state senators and representatives. 


LESSON TWO 

Statutory and common law. Territorial divisions of Indiana 
for governmental purposes. 

As provided for in the Constitution, the biennial General As¬ 
semblies—Legislatures—have made the laws of the state. 

There have been seventy-one Assemblies, and each has made a 
volume of laws, which have been published as the “Acts of the Gen¬ 
eral Assembly” of the year in which it was held. Besides these sep¬ 
arate volumes, designated by the year of enactment, compilations 
have been made, for the most part by individuals. Burns’ Revised 
Statutes (1914), four large volumes, with supplement containing 
laws made in 1915 and 1917, is the present most used authority. 
Moreover, the great body of “common law” found in court decisions 
of the entire United States, and published in hundreds of volumes, 
is used in all the courts of the state, and of all states. 

The Federal Constitution and Federal statutes, many volumes, 
are also in binding force in Indiana, as in all states of the union. In 
a brief statement: 


9 



Indiana has her own constitution, and her own statutes, state 
legislature made, which may differ, and do, widely, from those of 
other states; but they must conform to the Federal Constitutional 
provisions and to the Federal statutes, which are also in force in the 
state. 

In other words, we can do as we please in purely local affairs, if 
it is right in itself, not against some common law; but we cannot 
make laws which conflict in any way with Federal law. 

For example, Indiana made her own statutory prohibition law, 
had a perfect right to do so, though at that time there was no Fed¬ 
eral Prohibition, either constitutional or statutory. Since 1917, 
when the state prohibition law was made, the government at Wash¬ 
ington has enacted two kinds of prohibition measures which affect 
the whole United States. One, as a wartime measure, without any 
concurrence of state legislatures, made prohibition effective July 1, 
1919. 

The other measure, an amendment to the Federal constitution 
was passed by Congress, ratified by 45 of the 48 state Legislatures, 
and will go into effect Jan. 16, 1920. Because of the Federal amend¬ 
ment, it is not necessary to amend the state constitution for prohi¬ 
bition of the liquor traffic. 

Territorial Divisions of Indiana. 

(As a part of the Northwest Territory, what is now Indiana, 
was “laid off” by U. S. Survey in 1785 into about 1001 Congress¬ 
ional townships, each six miles square, and subdivided into 36 sec¬ 
tions, of which one, the 16th, or a substitute, was set aside for 
school purposes. These townships are numbered, have nothing 
whatever to do with our present Congress or with government. They 
are used only in deeds and abstracts of titles to real estate.) 

For Governmental Purposes. 

I. Counties. The largest territorial divisions of the state for 

92 in Indiana. self-government are created by the Legislature. 

“Serve a twofold purpose: (1) Subdivision of the state for ad¬ 
ministration of justice, for elections, for representation, for tax¬ 
ation, and for the enactment of state laws. (2) Area for local self- 
government. The county officers, therefore, are agents for the 
conduct of both state and local business.” 

The county seat is the town or city where the county offices are 
located and Circuit Court is held. Counties vary greatly in size 
and population. Each has a large number of officials. (Govern¬ 
ment is given in Lesson Eight.) 

II. Townships, Townships are subdivisions of the county, which 

Civil. 1016 in may be changed, if necessary, by the County Com- 
Indiana. missioners. They are known by names, and when 

possible conform to the boundaries of the Con¬ 
gressional townships. (See above). Each township has its own 
officers for self government. (Lesson Eight.) For election pur¬ 
poses, townships are divided into precincts, of which there are at 
present (1919) about 3142. 


10 


For Legislative Representation. 

III. State Sena- Made by the General Assembly of 1915. May 
torial Districts, be changed every six years, according to state 
45 census. The 92 counties are grouped according to 

population into 45 districts for the election of the 
50 State Senators. Marion county has five senators. Lake county 
has two. An amendment is pending concerning the census upon 
which the number and apportionment of state senators and repre¬ 
sentatives depends. 


TV. State Repre¬ 
sentative 
Districts. 76. 
(1915 Appor¬ 
tionment.) 


The 92 counties of the state are grouped into 76 
districts for the election of 100 State Representa¬ 
tives. 

Sixty-six districts elect one representative 
each. Other districts have more. 


V. Congressional The 92 counties of the state are grouped by the 
Districts 13. Legislature after United States decennial census, 
for the election of the congressmen apportioned to 
the state, according to its population. Apportionment, until new 
census is taken, is one congressman for 211,877 inhabitants. Group¬ 
ing often determines the party control, and “gerrymandering” of¬ 
ten is resorted to, in order to insure party success at the polls. 


For Judicial Purposes. 

VI. Circuit Court The 92 counties of the state are grouped by the 
Districts. 70 Legislature into 70 Circuit Court Districts, for 
Districts (1919) the jurisdiction and election of officials for the 

Circuit Courts. Populous counties each make a 
district. Smaller counties are grouped into districts. The elective 
officers are a judge and a prosecuting attorney. 

VII. Supreme The 92 counties of the state have been grouped 
Court Districts, by the Legislature into five Supreme Court Dis- 
5 Districts. tricts. Districts are for the nomination of the 

judges, one from each district, but the judges are 
elected by the voters at large, the voters of the entire state. 

VIII. Appellate The 92 counties of the state have been divided 

Districts or Di- by the Legislature into two districts, from each 
visions. 2 Dis- of which three judges are nominated to be elected 
tricts. by the people at large for the Appellate Courts of 

the state. 

(It should be remembered also that the entire state of Indiana 
is a Federal Court District, and likewise one of the states grouped 
with Illinois and Wisconsin in the Seventh Circuit of the United 
States Circuit Courts of Appeal.) 

Hence, wherever a woman lives, she belongs to (1) a precinct, 
(2) a township, and ward if in city, (3) county, (4) state senatorial 
district, (5) state representative district, (6) Congressional district, 
(7) Circuit Court District, (8) Supreme Court District, (9) Ap¬ 
pellate Court District. She has the protection also of the United 
States District Court, and the United States Circuit Court of Ap¬ 
peals. She has no election responsibilities concerning the judges of 

11 


the United States courts. They are appointed by the President. But 
her interests are often served and protected by these higher courts. 
Judge A. B. Anderson at Indianapolis considers the violations of the 
Federal liquor law in Indiana, questions concerning naturalization 
of aliens, and all matters pertaining to Federal statutes. 


LESSON THREE 
The Legislative Department 

The Lawmakers. General Assembly—.State Legislature. Const. 
Article IV. 

The official name of the legislative department is the General 
Assembly of the State of Indiana. Sec 1, Art. IV. 

Sessions are biennial in the odd numbered years. Begin “the 
Thursday next after the first Monday in January.” Sec. 9. 

Regular sessions are limited to sixty-one days. Special to forty 
days. Sec. 29. 

In some states, the Governor in the call for a special session, can 
limit the subjects for legislation, but the Governor of Indiana under 
the constitution cannot fix any such limitation. 

Like Congress, the Assembly consists of two bodies, the Senate 
and the House of Representatives. Sec. 1. 

There are 50 Senators and 100 Representatives apportioned to 
districts made according to a census taken every six years “of all 
the male inhabitants of the state over 21 years of age.” Census is 
taken by township trustees. (Amendment pending. See Lesson 
One.) 

At present time (1919) there are 45 state senatorial districts 
and 76 state representative districts. (See III and IV, Lesson Two.) 

Qualifications of Senators and Representatives differ only in 
minimum age—for Senators, 25; for Representatives, 21. Sec. 7. 

Must be citizens and inhabitants of state two years preceding 
election, and inhabitants of country or district for one year pre¬ 
ceding election. Sec. 7. 

Privileges. (1) Cannot be arrested during session of Assembly 
or on journey thereto or therefrom. (2) Cannot be subject to any 
civil process during session or the fifteen days preceding the session. 
(3) Cannot be questioned any other place for speech or debate made 
in either House. Sec. 8. (4) Has right to protest, and have both 

protest and reasons for it recorded in journal. Sec. 26. 

Appropriation for the 1919 Assembly expenses was $100,000. 
The probable cost of a special session of forty days would be about 
$ 66 , 000 . 

Law-Making Procedure. According to the Constitution, Art. IV. 

Sec. 10. Each House chooses its own officers (President of 
Senate excepted, who is the Lieut.-Governor of the state), decides 
election and qualifications of members, makes its own rules, and de¬ 
cides its own adjournment, to a three-day limit. 

Sec. 14. May punish members and even expel them by a two- 
thirds vote. 

Sec. 12. Must keep a journal. 

12 



Sec. 11. Must observe a two-thirds quorum. 

Sec. 12. Must vote by roll call upon any question if it is de¬ 
manded by two members, except a motion to adjourn, which requires 
one-tenth of members present to order roll call Final vote on pass¬ 
age of bill must be by roll call. 

Sec. 25. Constitutional majority for the final passage of bills 
is 26 in Senate and 51 in House. Bills may originate in either House, 
may be amended or rejected by the other, excepting bills for revenue, 
which must originate in the House of Representatives. Sec. 17. 

Sec. 18.. Bills shall be read by sections, on three different days, 
but a two-thirds majority roll call vote may dispense with this rule. 

Sec. 19. Every act shall embrace but one subject, which shall 
be expressed in the title. 

Sec. 20. Every act and joint resolution shall be plainly worded 
* * * avoiding technical terms. 

Sec. 21. No act shall ever be revised by mere mention to title. 
Must be set forth and published in full. 

Sec. 22. No special or local laws can be passed. Enumeration 
given. See Sec. 23. (The old Constitution permitted special laws, 
and hundreds were passed.) See Indiana Year Book, 1918, p. 762. 

Sec. 25. Bills must be passed by both Houses in the same form 
and signed by the presiding officers of both Houses, then taken to 
Governor for his signature. 

Art. V, Sec. 14. If he vetoes the measure, he returns it with his 
objections to the House in which it originated, which may proceed 
to reconsider it, pass and send it with the Governor’s objections to 
the other House, to be reconsidered, and if passed by a majority of 
the members, it becomes a law without the approval of the Governor. 

The above is practically what the state Constitution says about 
lawmaking. The real process is much more exciting and interesting. 
The word “committee” is not mentioned in the Article on the Legis¬ 
lative department. But the great amount of business requires com¬ 
mittees, of which each House has a large number named from the 
classes of bills referred to them. There are often also special and 
joint committees. 

When a bill is “introduced” by a member, it is immediately re¬ 
ferred by the presiding officer to a standing committee, which 
studies its details, holds a “hearing” for arguments both for and 
against it (anyone in Indiana may, if the committee permits, speak 
for or against it), and then (1) reports it out favorably “that the 
bill do pass,” or (2) reports it out unfavorably “that the bill do not 
pass,” or (3) “kills” or “smothers” it, by not reporting it out at all. 
The last is the favorite method for measures which the committee 
does not want discussed by the legislative body. If reported favor¬ 
ably, the bill is printed and a copy laid on each legislator’s desk. It 
can be amended in the committee, and “on the floor,” must be con¬ 
sidered two more times after its introduction, after second reading 
it passes to engrossment. It cannot be passed without a roll call 
majority of all of the members of the House. When passed by one 
House, it is taken to the other for exactly the same process, i. e., to 
be referred to a committee for consideration, a possible “hearing” 
and “reporting out,” before the members of the second House can 
discuss and vote upon it. Final passage is upon its “third reading,” 
when it is enrolled, signed by presiding officers and sent to the Gov- 


13 


ernor for his signature. Every measure is supposed to have the 
careful scrutiny of 50 Senators and 100 Representatives. But the 
measures are so many, the days of the Assembly so few, that most 
legislators understand only their own bills, and vote for the others 
as the party leader advises or dictates. Nevertheless, and notwith¬ 
standing all the confusion, hurry, lobbies and general bewilderment 
of a session of the General Assembly of Indiana, it closes in recent 
years with better, more democratic laws, under which there is more 
opportunity for the enjoyment of “unalienable rights. ,, 

The newspapers, most of them very faithful to facts, the open 
sessions and the roll call vote help much in legislative publicity, 
which is the fear of wrongdoers. 

Another fact is highly encouraging about the law-making body 
of Indiana—its consideration of the women of the state, who have 
been interested in measures which pertain to human welfare. With¬ 
out the direct influence of the vote, years ago, individual women 
were brave enough to go to the State House and ask for definite 
legislation. Working with some of the best men in the state, since 
1911, a child labor, a housing, a vocational education, a “lazy hus¬ 
band/' court matron, an “abatement” and prohibition measure, each 
and all have been enacted into law. In all of the Assemblies, there 
were some rude, ignorant, time and party-serving legislators, but 
there were many more who were courteous, intelligent and willing 
to vote for what was right, at the risk of party expediency, and 
they have their reward whenever a child has more time to grow and 
study, whenever a shack is condemned, whenever a lazy husband is 
made to work, a boy or girl is fitted at school for real life work, and 
a house of ill fame is closed. In 1915, the women’s organizations 
began to work together in a Legislative council and this co-opera¬ 
tion was continued during the 1917 and 1919 sessions. The directing 
officers for this legislative work of the women have always been 
members of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. 

The women who were at home were real forces for legislation, 
as well as the women who were in the state house, for the legislator 
returns home after those sixty-one days under the state house roof 
to live with his constituency. 

With the added power of the vote, women will insist upon more 
beauty and efficiency in community life, and Christian women will 
never cease working against evils that are wasteful of money, 
beauty and efficiency. Most of the women of the state, in fact, 
all but the few idle, self-indulgent, parasitic rich at one extreme 
of society, and the unfortunate, because ignorant and debased, at 
the other extreme, helped by money, by petition, by visit to the state 
house to enact the prohibition measure in 1917, which has already 
had some effect on the frightfully wasteful liquor traffic. 


LESSON FOUR 

The Executive and Administrative Department. Art. V and VI. 

Sec. 1. The Governor is the chief executive, is elected for four 
years and cannot hold his office for more than four years in any 
period of eight years. 


14 



Sec. 7. The Governor must be at least thirty years of age, and 
must have been a citizen of the United States and a resident of In¬ 
diana during the five years next preceding his election. 

Sec. 12. He is commander-in-chief of the military and naval 
forces of the state, and may call them out to execute the laws, or to 
suppress insurrection ,or to repel invasion. 

Sec. 17. He has the power to grant reprieves, commutations 
and pardons under the provision that the General Assembly may 
appoint a Board, without whose advice and consent the Governor 
shall not have such power. Indiana has a Board of Pardons, created 
in 1903. (Year Book p. 544). 

Sec. 13. He gives information and makes recommendations 
concerning the affairs of the state to the General Assembly. 

Sec. 14, Art. V. He has the power to veto Assembly bills, As¬ 
sembly can repass measures that are vetoed, without change of 
usual procedure or size of vote. 

Sec. 15 of Article V is the chief source of the Governor’s power 
over the state administration. '‘When the constitution was made, 
there was a distinct distrust of executive.” Hence, unlike the Fed¬ 
eral chief executive, the President, the Governor has no cabinet, and 
the administrative officers of the state are elective, not appointive. 
With the growth of the state, however, many new administrative 
functions have become necessary, and the Assembly from time to 
time has placed these functions under the care of Boards and Com¬ 
missions, appointed by the Governor, who also appoints the trus¬ 
tees in whole (a few in part) of the state institutions. The Gover¬ 
nor’s list follows: 

1. Public Service Commission. 

2. Industrial Board. 

3. Health. 

4. Pardons. 

5. Charities. 

7. Medical Registration and Examination. 

8. Registration and Examination in Optometry. 

9. Registration and Examination of Nurses. 

10. Pharmacy. 

11. Embalmers. 

12. Voting Machine Commission. 

13. Public Library Commission. 

14. Tax Commissioners. 

15. Control of Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument. 

16. Highway Commission. 

17. Live Stock Sanitary Board. 

18. Trustees of the Indiana School for the Blind. 

19. Trustees of the Indiana School for the Deaf. 

20. Trustees of the State Normal School. 

21. Trustees of the Orphans (Soldiers’ and Sailors’) Home. 

22. Trustees for School of Feeble-Minded Youth. 

23. Trustees of State Soldiers’ Home. 

24. Trustees of the five Hospitals for the Insane. 

25. Trustees for the Epileptic Village. 

26. Trustees for Tuberculosis Hospital. 

27. Trustees for the Boys’ School. 

28. Trustees for the Girls’ School. 

29. Trustees for State Prison. 

30. Trustees for Reformatory. 

31. Trustees for Woman’s Prison. 

32. Trustees for the Indiana State Farm. 

33. Six of the thirteen members of the State Board of Education. 

34. Five of the nine Purdue University Trustees. 

15 


State, County and Township Administratives Officers. Art. VI. 

Sec. 1. The other state constitutional officers are a Secretary, 
an Auditor and a Treasurer, elected for a term of two years and 
eligible for but four in any period of six years. (Amendment pend¬ 
ing. Lesson One.) 

'Succeeding Legislatures have created numerous other state 
officers. A list is given in the Year Book (1918) on pages 738 and 
739. When the Constitution was made in 1851, the Secretary of 
State had few duties. Succeeding Legislatures have added much to 
his duties. By virtue of his office, he belongs to various boards. 

He is secretary of the State Board of Public Printing, member 
of the Bank Charter Board, and of the Board of Public Buildings 
and Grounds, and finally all the registration work concerning the 
Motor Vehicles of the state has been given to him. He must make 
an abstract of the vote cast for all congressmen from Indiana, and 
for all state officials. He files domestic and foreign corporation 
papers and reports, issues Notary Public Commissions, records 
Trademarks, issues some kinds of licenses, sells the Assembly Acts. 

The Auditor of State is an ex-officio State Land, Bank, Build¬ 
ing and Loan and Insurance Commissioner. 

He is also a member of the State Boards—Finance, Accounts, 
Teachers’ Retirement Fund, Public Building and Grounds, Public 
Printing. 

His financial duties are too many to enumerate briefly, and 
they can be most easily understood by turning the pages of the re¬ 
port given in the 1918 Year Book, pages 58 to 138 inclusive. 

Total receipts, fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 1918, $16,401,015.56; 
disbursements, $16,113,971.63. 

The State Treasurer’s name appears on but two Boards—Can¬ 
vassers’ and Finance. He is custodian of the State Teachers’ Re¬ 
tirement Fund. The duties of the Treasurer are prescribed by 
statute. 

He receives and keeps records in separate accounts of all 
monies due the state. 

He deposits these monies in banks or trust companies desig¬ 
nated by State Board of Finance. 

He disburses the state funds only upon warrants drawn by the 
Auditor of State. 

County and Township administrative officers are considered 
in Lesson Eight. They are a part of the government of the state, 
and almost all of them report directly or indirectly to the state of¬ 
ficers. 

An amendment is pending concerning length of term of office 
of Treasurer, Sheriff and Coroner, and eliminating the office of 
County Surveyor. 


LESSON FIVE 

# 

The Judicial Department. Art. VII. 

“The judicial system of the state consists of the supreme, ap¬ 
pellate, circuit, superior, criminal, juvenile and probate courts, the 

16 


justices of the peace, mayor and city courts, the grand and petit 
juries, the prosecuting attorneys, jury commissioners, probation 
officers and various other auxiliary officers.” Year Book. 

The United States District Court of Indiana, popularly termed 
the “Federal Court/’ is located in the Federal-Postoffice-building at 
Indianapolis. Judge A. B. Anderson presides over it. 


Sec. 1, Art. VII. The State Courts. 

1. Supreme (A Court of Appeal). Held in the Supreme 
Courtroom in State House at Indianapolis. There are five judges 
nominated in state convention, one each from the five Supreme 
Court Districts of the state (see Lesson Two, VII), but elected by 
all the voters of the state. Term of office is six years. Salary is 
$6000. 

2. Appellate. A Court of Appeal, created by the Legislature 
in 1891 to relieve the Supreme Court. Held in Indianapolis. There 
are six Appellate judges, three from each of the two Appellate Dis¬ 
tricts of the state, nominated in state convention from district, like 
the Supreme Court judges, elected by the people at large. Term 
of office is four years. Salary is $6000. 

3. Circuit Courts. Held in county seats. There are at pres¬ 
ent (1919) 70 Circuit Court Districts in the state, each with a court 
and its judge and prosecutor, who are elected by the voters of the 
district. Some districts include several small counties. Populous 
counties require other courts, for which provision has been made 
by the Legislatures at various times. 

Circuit Court judges are elected for six years, are paid $3,500 
by the state, to which amount some counties add $500 more. Marion 
county pays more. The other officers of the Circuit Court are the 
clerk (elective) and the reporter and bailiff, both appointive. 

The special courts to relieve the Circuit Court in populous 
counties: 

(a) Superior. Marion county has 5; Lake, 3; Vigo, 2. Ten 
other counties have one each. 

(b) Criminal. Marion has 1, Lake has 1. 

(c) Probate. Marion and Vanderburg have each one. Other 
counties have probate commissioners appointed by Circuit Judge. 

(d) Juvenile. Marion has one. 

In other counties, juvenile court sessions are held by the cir¬ 
cuit judge. 

The Federal, Circuit, Superior, Criminal, Juvenile and Justice 
of the Peace Courts are all trial courts, where witnesses are heard 
and facts determined. 

City Courts are for violations of city ordinances, as well as state 
statutes, and cases may be appealed from them to the Circuit Court. 

(4) Justice of the Peace Courts. Sec. 14, Art. VII. Justices of 
the Peace are elected by the voters of each township for a term of 
four years. No township can have more than two and one for each 
incorporated town or city, except Center Township, Marion County, 
which has five. Most of them are compensated by fees, some have 


17 


salaries. There are no qualifications required. The constitution 
says, “A competent number of justices of the peace shall be elected 
by the voters/’ but nothing whatever about the competency of the 
justice himself. 


LESSON SIX 

The State Boards and Commissions. Year Book (1918) 

Nothing can be more interesting to Indiana women than the re¬ 
ports of the various Boards and Commissions, which have been 
created from time to time to meet the needs of the state. They are 
now, since 1917, published in the same volume as the reports of 
the officers of the state. Some, of necessity, are abridged for this 
purpose. 

The women of the state are perhaps more familiar with the 
State Board which has supervision of the charities and correction, 
and the Board of Health, because their highly-efficient Secretaries 
have attended, at times, some of the conventions of women’s organi¬ 
zations, with a mesesage of both information and inspiration. Then, 
too, many women attend the annual convention of the Board of 
State Charities, from which they return to their homes with added 
vision of the needs of the state, and with much help, oftentimes, for 
local unsatisfactory conditions. 

The names of the various Boards and Commissions indicate 
their duties. They are classified as Ex-Officio, both Ex-Officio and 
Appointive, and appointive. The 1919 Assembly changed a num¬ 
ber of the 1918 year book Boards and Officers. 

Ex-Officio Boards. 

1. Public Buildings and Property. Governor, Secretary and 
Auditor of State. 

2. Election Commissioners. Governor and two others. 

3. Canvassers. Secretary, Treasurer, Attorney General of 
State. 

4. Public Printing. Governor, Secretary, Auditor and Re¬ 
porter of Supreme Court. 

5. Charter. Governor, Secretary and Auditor of State. 

6. Finance. Governor, Auditor, Treasurer of State. 

7. Industrial Aid for Blind. Trustees of School for the Blind. 

8. Rooms in State House. Governor, Secretary and Auditor 
of State. 

9. Teachers’ Retirement Fund. State Superintendent of In¬ 
struction, Auditor, Attorney General of State, a County Superin¬ 
tendent and President of State Normal 

Appointive and Ex-Officio Boards. 

1. State Board of Education. Thirteen members. The Super¬ 
intendent of Public Instruction, Presidents of the three state edu¬ 
cational institutions (Indiana and Purdue Universities, and the 
State Normal), and Superintendents of Schools of three largest 

18 



cities, Indianapolis, Evansville and Fort Wayne, are the seven ex- 
officio members. The six members appointed by the Governor are 
three interested in vocational education, one an employer, another 
an employe, and three engaged in educational work, one of whom, 
at least, is a County Superintendent. This Board is also the School 
Book Commissioners’ Board, State Library Board and State Teach¬ 
ers’ Training Board. 

2. Board of Accounts. Three members. The ex-officio mem¬ 
bers are, the Governor and the Auditor of State. The State Ex¬ 
aminer and his assistant deputies, appointed by the Governor, have 
charge of this important Board. 


Appointive Boards and Commissions. 



Term. No. Members. Salary per Annum. 

1. Public Service . 

.4 years 

5 

$6,000. 

2. Industrial . 

.4 years 

5 

$4,000. 

3. Health . 

.4 years 

6 

$10 per day in attendance. 

4. Pardons . 

.4 years 

3 

$300. 

5. State Charities . 

.3 years 

6 

No salary. 

6. Med. Reg. and Ex. 

.4 years 

6 

$6 per day in attendance. 

7. Reg. and Ex. Optom. 


5 

$5 per day in attendance. 

8. Reg. Ex. Nurses. 

.3 years 

5 

$5 per day in attendance. 

9. Pharmacy . 

.4 years 

5 

$5 per day in attendance. 

10. Dental Ex. 

.2 years 

5 

$10 per day in attendance. 

11. Embalmers . 

.4 years 

5 

$5 per day in attendance. 

12. Voting Machine . 

.4 years 

3 

$50 for each machine. 

13. Stallion Enroll. 

.3 years 

3 

$5 per day in attendance. 

14. Public Library . 

.4 years 

3 

No salary. 

15. Bd. Con. Sol. Sail Mon. 

.3 years 

3 

No salary. 

16. State Highway . 

.4 years 

4 

$10 per day of work. 

17. Certified Accountants . 

.4 years 

3 

No salary. 

18. Employment . 

.4 years 

7 

No salary except Director. 

19. Live Stock Sanitary. 

.4 years 

4 

No salary. 

20. Teachers’ Training (The 

State Board 

of Educa 


tion) . 



No salary. 

21. Conservation . 

.4 years 

4 

No salary 

22. Tax Commissioners . 

.4 years 

3 

$4,500. 


Appointive Statutory State Officers. 


Salary. 

Law Librarian, by Supreme Court.....$1*800 

State Librarian, by State Library Board, the State School Board. 2,500 

Secretary Librarian Commission, by Commission.Not given in Year Book 

Director-Secretary Highway Commission, by Commission.Not given in Act. 

Director Conservation Commission, by Commission.Not to exceed $4,000 

Veterinarian, by Live Stock Sanitary Board.Not given in Act. 


By Governor for four-year terms— 

Fire Marshal . 

State Examiner of Accounts. 

Inheritance Tax Investigator . 


$4,000 
. 4,000 
. 2,000 


By Industrial Board; term, pleasure of the Board— 

Secretary .-.. 

Inspector of Boilers.. 

Inspector Factories . 

Inspector Mines ... 

Director Women and Children’s Department. 


2,500 

2,000 

2,000 

2,000 

2,000 


By Board of State Charities; term, pleasure of the Board— 

9 f 

Secretary .-. ’ 

Agents .-.-. 


19 








































By State Board of Health— 

Secretary; term of four years... 

Chemist and Food and Drug Commissioner; term, pleasure of Board. 


By Conservation Commission— 

Director; term, pleasure of Commission; not more than. 


4,000 


The Director, with approval of Board, appoints and fixes salaries 
of Chiefs of Five Divisions: 

(a) Geologist. 

(b) Entomologist. 

(c) Forester. 

(d) Superintendent Lands and waters. 

(e) Superintendent Fisheries and Game. 


By Superintendent of Public Instruction— 

High School Inspector; term, 2 years. 2,500 

Director Vocational Education; term, 4 years... 6,000 

Supervisor Agricultural Education (Purdue University shares in appoint¬ 
ment) ; term, 4 years.-. 4,300 


The state Chemist, by virtue of his professorship at Purdue University.Fees 

Oil Inspection is now under the supervision of a department of the State 
Board of Health. 

Gas Inspection is under the Conservation Department. 


Work of State Boards and Commissions. 

Conservation Has charge of new department of administra- 

Commission. tion in Indiana. Department is a merger of the 
Four Members four departments of geology, entomology, fores- 
Appointed by try, fisheries and game, with the addition of a 
Governor. One department of lands and waters, which will take 
is Nominated charge of public parks. The Department of Con- 
by Academy of servation is in charge of a Director appointed by 
Science. the Commission. The Director appoints the chief 

of the five divisions, with the approval of the Com¬ 
mission. All the powers and duties of the former departments, in¬ 
cluding the gas supervisor, are transferred to the Department of 
Conservation, and are explicitly set forth in the act, pp. 381-388 of 
the 1919 Acts. The operation of the law will be followed with much 
interest. 


State Highway Created in 1917. Act repealed and new act 
Commission. passed, 1919. Chap. 53. 

Four Members Congressional districts are divided or grouped 
Appointed by into four divisions or districts, from each of which 
Governor. * one member of commission is appointed. 

Commission appoints a Director as secretary 
and executive officer. 


Has three Division—(1) Construction, (2) Maintenance, (3) 
Auditing. Chief for each. 

Director, with approval of Commission, appoints and removes 
for cause the chiefs of divisions, and appoints and removes all as¬ 
sistants and employes of divisions upon recommendations of the 
chiefs thereof. 

All employes shall be required to pass such examination as may 
be required by commission, which fixes the compensation of direc- 


20 









tor and all employes, subject to approval of the Governor. Bonds 
may be required. 

The law provides for a system of state highways and for co¬ 
operation with the Federal government in the construction of rural 
post roads. With another act (Chap. 112, Acts, 1919) which pro¬ 
vides for the taking over of township roads by the county, there is 
surely provision at last for thoroughly good roads all over the state. 

Industrial Board. (Year Book, pp. 453-514 Acts 1919). 

Five Members. Chairman of Board an attorney of recognized 
Four Inspectors qualifications. 

and Secretary. The Board has four departments of work. 

One Inspector 1. One inspects the Boilers in the State; 9,260 
Is a Woman, i n report. 

Who Is Director 2. Another inspects the fire escapes, factories, 
of a New De- workshops, hotels, lodging houses, theaters, 
partment of schools, churches, public buildings and water 
Women and craft. Total, 2,454. 

Children, 3. The woman inspector’s work was done in 

Created in 1919. twenty cities of the state, visited from one to four 
times. One hundred child labor cases were hand¬ 
led, and the problems connected with the employment of women and 
children were carefully studied. There was intelligent and sympa¬ 
thetic co-operation with Federal Agencies, the Child Labor Bureau, 
the Women in Industry Service, Department of Labor, and the 
United States Public Health Service. Constructive work was em¬ 
phasized for sanitation, health and morals. 

4. The report of the Department of Mines and Mining is full 
of interest. Nearly 28,000 miners earned $39,776,916. Coal mined, 
about 28,795,682 tons. The Board succeeded in getting additional 
legislation in 1919. 

Finance Boards and Commissions. 

Besides the State Treasurer and State Auditor, who are con¬ 
stitutional officers in charge of the finances of the state, the Legis¬ 
lature has created two other agencies—the State Board of Tax 
Commissioners, in 1891, and the State Board of Accounts, in 1909. 

Tax Commission. 1. Organization, duties and powers given in 
Three Members Acts, 1919, pp. 298-306. 

Appointed by Visits each county in the state at least once a 
Governor. year to confer with the county and township as¬ 

sessors and county auditors and treasurers. As¬ 
sessment values and tax levies determine public revenue. High 
levies are a menace to prosperity. The 1919 Assembly made a law 
which requires the actual valuation of property to be returned by 
the assessors, expecting the tax rate to be lowered thereby in the 
state. There is an Inheritance Tax Department, and the 1919 As¬ 
sembly provided a “pending” amendment for an income tax. 

Board of 2. The accounting law authorizes the examina- 

Accounts. tion and investigation of the expenditure, in every 

Three Members detail, of public funds. It is claimed that under 
and Five this law the taxpayers of the state are saved more 

Officers. than a million dollars annually. “The certainty of 

examination and detection is a greater preventa- 

21 


tive of fraud than a law providing a penalty for such a fraud, but 
which does not provide a method for its detection.” Publicity of 
examiners’ reports was provided for in 1917. 

Board of Certi- This Board was created by legislative act in 
fied Accountants. 1915, for the purpose of providing for the exami¬ 
nation and licensing of certified accountants. A 
grade of 75 per cent is necessary in each of the four subjects to 
entitle the applicant to a certificate. Copies of questions are mailed 
on application. The examination requires two days. The appli¬ 
cants’ other qualifications are thoroughly investigated by the Board 
of Examiners. 


Public Service Created in 1913, to succeed the Railroad Corn- 
Commission. mission of Indiana. It has power to regulate and 
Five Members, fix railroad freight and passenger rates, except 
A Secretary. where otherwise provided by law; to control car 
Five Heads of distribution and movements; to supervise location 
Departments. and construction of sidings; the crossing of tracks; 
Thirty-seven in fact, it has much jurisdiction over common car- 
Employes. _riers, limited, of course, to those of the State of 
Indiana. The commission has jurisdiction, also, 
over all public utilities, water, light, power, heating, gas and ware¬ 
house companies. Appeal may be taken from its orders to the 
courts. It is a very busy department of government. 


Board of Health. (Year Book, 1918, pp. 64, 374-434.) 

Six Members, The reports of the Boards of Health (and also 
Appointed by of State Charities) should be read in full and care- 

Governor. fully by every woman of the state really interested 

in its welfare. 

Dept, of Labora- The Indiana Board of Health is now a part of 
tory of Hygiene the United States Public Health Service at Wash- 
Makes Analysis ington. 

of Food, Drugs The Department of Weights and Measures of 
and Water of the great value. The abstracts of proceedings of 
State. Board Meetings (pp. 379-382) encouraging and 

helpful to women working for betterment of 

health conditions. 

The law provides for a health officer in every county, city and 
town of the state ; but the salary is inadequate, qualifications too 
few, and the physician is only a “part time” officer. Many of the 
women of the state want an “all time,” well-paid health officer, 
thoroughly qualified, free from all political party influence, and re¬ 
sponsible to the State Board of Health, as well as his county, city or 
town. County health officers sometimes appoint local health offi¬ 
cers, some of whom are not qualified for their duties, but like some 
school attendance and probation officers in the state are given the 
position, for political reasons or because an income is needed. Not 
a few citizens of the state think that the total amount of money 
spent for many health officers might be spent for a smaller num¬ 
ber of thoroughly qualified efficient physicians and nurses to great 
advantage for the health of the state and respect for its govern¬ 
ment. A new law is imperatively needed. 

The table of deaths and their causes (No. 24, p. 434) is ex¬ 
tremely interesting. In 1917 (not the influenza year), the largest 

22 


number of deaths were from pneumonia, tuberculosis and cancer. 
Babies and adults over 50 years of age, from pneumonia. Adults, 
between 30 and 40, had the highest number from tuberculosis. 
Adults, between 60 and 70, from cencer. 

A commission on child welfare and social insurance to visit 
parts of the state, hold hearings and report by Dec. 1, 1920, was 
provided for by 1919 Assembly. 

Indiana is in the national campaign against venereal disease. 
A circular giving results of medical examinations of drafted men, 
and of the United States Government plan of organization against 
“social” diseases was sent over the state. Several cities are already 
at work on the problem. Study entire report. 

Vital Statistics. 

(Year Book, 1918, p. 390.) 

Births .63,073—Illegitimate, 873. 

Deaths .39,785 

Marriages ....36,811 

Created by Legislature in 1889, “for supervision 
of entire system of public charities and correc¬ 
tion.” From time to time, succeeding Legisla¬ 
tures have assigned to the Board duties of an ad¬ 
ministrative character. Most of these relate to 
the welfare of dependent and delinquent children. 
The 1917 Assembly provided for the return of 
non-resident dependents and defectives to their 
legal residence, and also for an appropriation to 
the Board for a more thorough supervision of re¬ 
lief of the poor, by township trustees. The 1919 
Assembly gave County Board of Children’s Guar¬ 
dians the authority to place dependent children 
under the care of mothers, who could receive com¬ 
pensation (not exceeding the legal per diem) for 
each child so placed. A safeguarded “mothers’ 
pension.” The county Boards of Children’s Guar¬ 
dians have women members always, and it is hoped and believed 
that this “mothers’ pension” provision will never be abused, and 
used for political purposes as in other states. It is surely impos¬ 
sible under the present state Board administration and supervision. 

The Governor is at the head of the state’s system of public 
charities and correction. 

Maintenance is provided by the Legislature. Methods of ac¬ 
counting are prescribed by the State Board of Accounts, which ex¬ 
amines all records of finances. Each institution has a board of 
trustees appointed by the Governor. 

County commissioners manage the county institutions with 
money provided by the County Council. 

The township trustee is the overseer of the poor in the town¬ 
ships. 

“On Sept. 30, 1918, state and local charitable and correctional 
institutions had 17,471 inmates.” 

During the year 1917, the township trustees, as overseers ot 
the poor, aided 72,590 persons. 


Board of State 
Charities. 

Six Members. 
Seven Officers. 
Supervised 
Institutions: 
State— 

Benevolent, 11. 
Correctional, 6. 
Educational, 2. 

County— 
Charities. 
Correctional. 

City- 

Hospitals. 

Jails. 


23 




The expenses incurred by the above agencies amounted to $5,- 
623,236.86. This sum was paid by the taxpayers of the state. 

The state institutions, of necessity, cost the most money, but 
the local charities have the problem of the greater number of per¬ 
sons affected. 

The 1919 Assembly provided for a Farm Colony for the Feeble- 
Minded, to consist of not less than 1,000 acres, and to be purchased 
on or before Jan. 1, 1920. 

The women of the state cannot be too strongly urged to read 
and study the Quarterly Bulletins and all reports of the Board of 
State Charities. Its methods for the care of the unfortunates of 
the state, whose heredity or environment or both have placed them 
in the class of the delinquents, defectives or dependents, are funda¬ 
mentally sound, and its plans for the future are constructive and 
far-reaching, for the causes and sources of this stream of human 
misery are being studied. Women should attend the conventions, 
held each year, of this Board. It is of three days’ duration, every 
session is of vital interest, and equal to the reading of many theore¬ 
tical books. The conventions are held, moreover, at a different city 
each year, and usually near a state institution which can be seen by 
the convention visitors. 


LESSON SEVEN 
State Institutions. 

I. For the Dependents, Delinquents and Defectives. 

(Year Book, 1918, pp. 744-745.) 

1. Benevolent. Eleven at present. All except Robert Long 
Hospital governed by Trustees appointed by Governor. Five Hos¬ 
pitals for the insane located in different parts of the state. 

No. Cost 

Inmates. Per Capita. 


The five Hospitals for Insane.5,202 $240.47 

Lafayette, Soldiers’ Home . 710 291.13 

Knightstown, Soldiers’ & Sailors’ Orphans’ Home. 355 309.53 

Fort Wayne, School for Feeble-Minded.1,409 169.32 

Newcastle, Epileptic Village . 348 258.60 

Rockville, Tuberculosis Hospital . 150 554.05 

Indianapolis, Robert W. Long Hospital. 94 992.96 


2. Correctional. Six in number, governed by Trustees ap¬ 


pointed by Governor. 

No. Cost 

Inmates. Per Capita. 

Plainfield^ Boys’ School . 554 $231.92 

Clermont, Girls’ School . 365 272.19 

Michigan City, State Prison. 1,322 218.02 

Jeffersonville, Indiana Reformatory . 441 271.74 

Indianapolis, Woman’s Prison . 105 262.73 

Putnamville, Indiana State Farm. 471 234.33 

3. Educational for Defectives. 

No. Cost 

Inmates. Per Capita. 

Indianapolis, School for the Deaf. 280 $329.82 

Indianapolis, School for the Blind. 109 446.60 


24 


















All of these institutions are under the supervision of the State 
Board of Charities, have been and are models for institutions of 
the same kind in many states of the union. The number of inmates 
is taken from Annual Report of Sept. 30, 1918. 


II. Educational Institutions. 


1. Indiana Uni¬ 
versity. Eight 
Trustees—3 by 
Alumni, 5 by 
State Board of 
Education. 


Founded at Bloomington, 1820. Consists of 

a. College of Liberal Arts. 

b. School of Education. 

c. School of Law. 

d. School of Medicine. 

e. Graduate School. 

f. Extension Division. 


The Extension Division has for its purpose the desire “to 
bring the University to the people, where the people can not come 
to the University.” It has four departments of work: (1) Cor¬ 
respondence Study, (2) Instruction by Lectures, sent from faculty 
either for single numbers or lecture courses, (3) Debating and Pub¬ 
lic Discussion. Questions for debate in High Schools and Societies 
suggested and material furnished for debaters. (4) General In¬ 
formation and Welfare. Information furnished on almost any sub¬ 
ject. Community Institutes held for discussion on Health, Econ¬ 
omy and Social Betterment. Industrial Survey made to help a com¬ 
munity to improve its schools, libraries, streets, parks, lights or 
other public services. Pictures and slides loaned for free exhibition 
to schools, churches and libraries, and conferences for general wel¬ 
fare. 

The number of students in 1918 was 2,659, with about 500 in 
war service. The value of real estate and equipment is nearly $2,- 
000,000. The total disbursements for the year ending September 
30, 1918, was $744,645.55. 

2. Purdue Uni- Organized in 1862 under act of Congress. Lo- 
versity, Lafay- cated in Tippecanoe county by an act of the State 
ette. Nine * Legislature in 1869, and named Purdue Univer- 
Trustees—2 sity in consideration of a grant of money and 
Nominated by land by John Purdue. 

Board Agricul- Purdue University is charged under the law 
ture, 1 by Board with a great variety of functions, in accordance 
Horticulture, 1 with which the organization of the University is 
by Alumni, 5 by as follows: 

Governor of A. Schools of Instruction. 

State. (a) School of Agriculture. 

(b) School of Applied Science. 

(c) School of Mechanical Engineering. 

(d) School of Civil Engineering. 

(e) School of Electrical Engineering. 

(f) School of Chemical Engineering. 

(g) School of Pharmacy. 

(h) Departments of mathematics, English, modern languages, 
history, economics, physical education, practical mech¬ 
anics, military science. 


25 


B. The Agricultural Experiment Station. 

C. The Department of Agricultural Extension. 

D. The Engineering Experiment Station. 

It is supported by the State of Indiana, by the proceeds of an - 
endowment by the Federal Government, and by appropriations by 
the Federal Government. 

The Extension Department has many branches of work. More 
than 30 women have been constantly engaged in lecture work over 
the state, 33 Home Demonstration Agents have organized groups 
for the preserving of food. County Agents are now aiding all but 
twenty counties in the state. More than 22,000 boys and girls have 
been organized in boys’ and girls’ clubs. Educational Exhibits, 
Farm Management Demonstrations, Conferences of all Extension 
Workers, Home Economics Extension Classes are among the forms 
of activities of this far-reaching and invaluable Department of the 
University. Short courses in a number of subjects are held. 

The number of students in 1918 was 1,795. The University 
publishes a large number of bulletins and pamphlets. Total dis¬ 
bursements, year ending Sept. 30, 1918, $1,191,171.39. Of this 
sum, Federal government provided $140,000. 

8. Indiana State Created by act of Legislature in 1865, located at 
Normal. Four Terre Haute. The object of the school is defined 
Trustees—1 Ex-in the act, “The preparation of Teachers for 
Officio, State teaching in the public schools of Indiana.” It 
Supt. Pub. Inst., maintains a complete system of training schools 
3 appointed by and a typical rural school three miles in the coun- 
Governor. try. “It is not an institution for general culture 

for its own sake; it is a special school—a . pro¬ 
fessional school.” An Eastern Division is maintained at Muncie, 
Indiana. The whole number of students enrolled in 1917-1918 was 
2,449. Total number of students since organization of school, 52,- 
220. Disbursements, year ending Sept. 30, 1918, $360,933.52. 

III. Educational Organizations. 

Public Library There are nearly 200 tax-supported public libr- 
Commission. aries in the state, and 11 conducted by clubs or 
Three Members, associations which are open to the public, 
one of whom is There are 72 reference and institutional libr- 
a woman. aries. 

The Traveling Library department had a cir¬ 
culation of 41,518 volumes in the year from Oct. 1, 1917, to Oct. 1, 
1918. 

The State Library, under the control of the State Board of Edu¬ 
cation, has a staff of 15 members. It is primarily a reference libr¬ 
ary, with “four main functions: to aid state officers in their official 
business; to distribute information to citizens of the state; to col¬ 
lect and preserve all Indiana material, and documents of the United 
States and of other states; to distribute Indiana documents.” It 
circulates reading matter for the blind throughout the state. Keeps 
the Library of the Academy of Science as a separate unit. 

The Indiana Law Library is under the custody of the Supreme 
Court. It contains 60,000 volumes, and has separate rooms in a dif¬ 
ferent part of the State House adjoining the Supreme Courtroom. 

26 


Indiana Historical Society. 

Chartered in 1831. Reorganized in 1886. Has more than 100 
members. Collects and publishes documents and papers relative to 
history of Indiana. With the State Library and the History Sur¬ 
vey Department of Indiana University, the Historical Society con¬ 
tributes to the publication of the Indiana Magazine of History. 

Indiana Historical Commission. 

Consists of nine members, three ex-officio, one named by the 
Historical Society, five appointed by the Governor. 

The Commission had charge of the Indiana Centennial in 1916. 

Collects, edits and publishes historical and documentary 
volumes. 


Indiana Academy of Science. 

Chartered by the state. Membership numbers nearly four hun¬ 
dred persons. Publishes an annual report of about 500 pages, which 
is paid for by the state and is a public document. Report consists 
of discussions and investigations upon scientific matters. 


LESSON EIGHT 

County and Township Government. 

(Year Book, pp. 793-812. Garner, Ind., 11-24.) 

The county is a most important governmental agency, 
are 92 in the state. 

Public Officers. 


There 


f. County Com¬ 
missioners. 
(Const., Sec. 10, 
Art. VI.) Three 
in number. 

Qualifications? 
—Is also the 
County Board of 
Finance with 
city finance 
officer. 

8 . 

9. 

10 . 

II. County Coun¬ 
cil. Legislative 
Act, 1899. Bud¬ 
get Maker. 

Salary, accord¬ 
ing to popula¬ 
tion of county, 
$10 to $20 per 

annum. 


1. Elected by people for term of four years, 
one each general election year. 

2. Must hold twelve monthly meetings in year. 

3. Has full charge of all county roads, under 
supervision of state or Federal highway commis¬ 
sions. 

4. Buys, sells and maintains county property. 

5. Constructs public buildings (county). 

6. Grants franchises for poles, wires and 
tracks on highway. 

7. Purchases county supplies, provides for 
support of indigent. 

Lays off, divides or consolidates townships. 

Changes location and direction of streams. 

Appoints many county executives. (See below.) 

Each county has four districts, one councilman 
from each, elected by its voters. In addition to 
these four, each county has three at large, elect¬ 
ed by all the voters of the county. 

Regular meeting in September. 

(a) To consider budget as prepared by the 
County Commissioners and Auditor on estimates 
furnished by County Officers. 

(b) To fix the county levy. 

(e) To make the appropriations. 

27 



(d) To authorize the issue of County Boards. 

(e) Emergency appropriations may be made at special meet¬ 
ings by a two-thirds vote. 

All appropriations are authorized by ordinances considered on 
at least two separate days before their adoption, which must be by 
a majority vote. 


III. Clerk of the All are constitutional officers who must be 
Circuit Court, nominated at the May Primaries and elected the 
County Auditor, following November. The first three—Clerk, 
Recorder, Sheriff, Auditor and Recorder—have four-year terms. 
Treasurer, Coro- The other four, two-year terms. An amendment 
ner, Surveyor. is pending to the Constitution changing two-year 

terms to four years, and eliminating the election 
of a Surveyor. (Acts 1919, Chap. 240). 

IV. County Boards. 


1. County Commissioners (see above). 

2. County Council (see above). 

3. Board of Finance. 


4. Primary Election Commissioners 

5. Election Commissioners 

6. Canvassing Board 


These three boards com¬ 
posed of the same three 
men—Clerk of the Court, 
and an Elector appointed 
by each of the chairmen 
of the two leading poli¬ 
tical parties. 

7. Board of Review (Assessment of property for taxation). 
Consists of County Assessor, Auditor, Treasurer and two free¬ 
holders appointed by Judge of the Circuit Court. 

8. Board of Education. Consists of Township Trustees, Coun¬ 
ty Superintendent of Schools and presiding officers of Board of 
School Trustees of cities and towns in the county. 

Many counties have the following named boards, and ail coun¬ 
ties may have them: 


9. Board of Children’s Guardians. Six members appointed by 
Judge of the Circuit Court, to provide for neglected or dependent 
children. 


10. Board of County Hospital Trustees. 

11. Board of Managers of County Tuberculosis Hospital. 

12. County Public Library Board. 


28 



County Superintendents and Other County Administrative Officers. 

1. Schools. Elected by Township Trustees for 
four years. 

2. Highways. Inspector. Per diem pay. Also 
an engineer, if County Surveyor is not an en¬ 
gineer. 

3. County Asylum for four years. 

4. Workhouse, if established. 

5. County Physician. 

6. Veterinarian. 

7. Health Commissioner. 

8. Inspector of Weights and Measures. Excepting 
in counties containing a city of the first, sec¬ 
ond, third or fourth class, which already have 
inspectors. 

9. Agricultural Agent. Appointed by Purdue 
University, with approval of county and state 
boards of education. 

There are some other appointive public officers, who have 
specific duties. Most of them are appointed by the County Com¬ 
missioners or the Judge of the Circuit Court. 

Counties having a population of 50,000 or more have a prison 
matron, appointed by the Sheriff as a part of his force, who has 
direct charge of all women and girl prisoners. 

The County Judiciary has been considered in Lesson Five. 

Township. 

There are 1016 Townships in the State of Indiana (see Lesson 
Two.) 

Townships are civil corporations for the purpose of conducting 
elections, assessing property, taking the census of inhabitants, of 
school children, of old soldiers and of the dogs, administering jus¬ 
tice in petty matters, and for caring for township finances. They 
are also school corporations. 

Officers. Trustee, Advisory Board, Assessor, Constable, 

Justices of the Peace—all nominated at May 
Primaries, and elected for four-year terms. The Township Advi¬ 
sory Board—three members—performs the same duties for the 
Township that the County Council does for the County. It acts also 
as a Board of Finance to select the depositories for Township 
money. One regular annual meeting the first Tuesday in Septem¬ 
ber. Special meetings may be called. 

Trustee. 1. Manages and controls all schools for the 

Qualifications? Township. Hires teachers and purchases sup¬ 
plies. Builds and maintains school houses and 
furnishes transportation for school children. Enumerates school 
children and old soldiers annually. 

2. Takes the apportionment census every six years. 

3. Serves as election inspector in his precinct. 

4. Prepares the Township Budget. 

5. Is overseer of the poor. 

6. Fence viewer. 


Appointed by < 
County 

Commissioners 


29 



Townships of the state are divided into ten classes, according 
to population and necessary services of trustees. 

Salary of the trustees is based upon this classification. 


LESSON NINE 
Cities and Town Government 

(Year Book, 1918, pp. 849-863.) 

Cities in Indiana are divided into classes. Government different 
in each class. 


Class. Population. Names of Cities. 

First .. 100,000 or over. Indianapolis. 

g econ( l . Between 35,000 and 100,000 Evansville, Ft. Wayne, Terre 

Haute, South Bend, Gary. 

Third . Between 20,000 and 35,000 Anderson, Hammond, Lafay¬ 

ette, Muncie, New Albany, 
Richmond. 

Fourth . Between 10,000 and 20,000; Eleven cities. 

under 10,000 if taxable 
property amounts to $7,- 
500,000. 

Fifth . All cities less than 10,000, Seventy-five cities. 

and all cities between 10,- 
000 and 20,000 whose tax¬ 
able property is less than 
$5,000,000. 


City Elections are not held in general election years, but are 
held in the odd years, following leap year, which is the big election 
year, or the presidential year. 

City Officers. 

I. Elective. 1. Mayor. Duties vary according to class of 

city. He is chief executive. 

2. City Judge in all first and second-class cities. Holds daily 
sessions of court. 

3. City Clerk. Is secretary of council, keeps records, seal and 
ordinance book. 

4. City Treasurer, excepting in county seats, where the 
County Treasurer is also the City Treasurer; but county seats of 
the fourth and fifth classes, which own municipal water or lighting 
plants, elect a City Treasurer. 

5. City Councilmen. Is the legislative body; makes the ordin¬ 
ances by which the city is governed locally. 

II. Appointive. 1. Comptroller. By Mayor in first and second- 

class cities. Has charge of finances and becomes 
Mayor in case of death or disability of the Mayor. 

2. Attorney. By Mayor. Law advisor. Draws up ordinances 
and contracts. 

3. Court Matron. By Board of Safety. Investigates women 
and girl cases for the City Judge. 

4. City Engineer. By Mayor. Is under direction of the Board 
of Works. 

5. City Bailiff. By City Judge. Excepting in Indianapolis. 

30 








City Boards. 

1. _ Public Works. Three members, not more than two of the same 
r, a ”u.» econ d political party. Have charge of public buildings, 
Class Cities. streets, alleys, sewers, lights, water, gas, garbage, 

telephones, bridges and culverts. Appointed by 
Mayor. 

In cities of * he th . ird class, if there is no Board of Public Works 
(there may be, if desired,) the duties are performed by council or 
committee of council or by Board of Safety. 

In cities of the fourth class, if no Board of Public Works (there 
may be, if desired), duties are performed by Mayor, City Engineer 
and a Commissioner of Public Works, or by Board of Safety. 

2. Board of In first and second-class cities, unless they have 

Safety. With Metropolitan Police and Fire Commissioners. 
Mayor is re- Three members appointed by Mayor, not more 

sponsible for law than two from same political party. This Board 
enforcement. has qualifications. Must be able to speak and 

write English. Has charge of Police and Fire 
Departments. 

3. Board of Elective in two cities—Indianapolis and Terre 
School Trustees. Haute. Called Commissioners in Indianapolis. In 
Qualifications? other cities, school trustees are elected by com¬ 
mon council. Have charge of city schools. Elect 

the attendance officers for which the law and pay are at present 
totally inadequate. Probably the weakest part of the school system. 

4. Parks. Cities of the first and second class have boards 

of Park Commissioners of four members, not more 
than two from one political party, appointed by the Mayor for terms 
of four years. The Board appoints a secretary, a superintendent 
of parks and other necessary employes. The council of any third, 
fourth or fifth-class city may create a board of trustees to manage 
the parks of the city. The council fixes the number of trustees, ap¬ 
points them. The trustees serve without compensation. 

Towns and Town Government. 

For the incorporation of a town, a survey, a map and a census 
giving heads of families, number of persons in each and the names 
of the real estate owners must be made. A petition signed by at 
least one-third of the qualified voters and one-third of the real estate 
owners must be presented to the county commissioners. An elec¬ 
tion is then held, and, if successful, three inspectors elected by the 
voters divide the town into not less than three, nor more than seven 
wards, and an election of officers is held. 

Officers—Town Town Trustees, the Clerk and Treasurer are 
Trustees, Town elected. One Trustee is elected from each ward 
Marshal, Clerk, by the town at large. This board has general con- 
Treasurer. trol over the town. It appoints the town Marshal, 

who is the chief police officer, and may be required 
to act as street commissioner and fire chief. 


31 


Board of School Elected by Town Trustees for terms of three 
Trustees. years. 

School One at least may be appointed for each school 

Physicians. corporation, but no physician may have more than 

2000 children under his control. The eyesight, 
hearing, teeth of the children should be inspected. Any disease or 
disability or defect should be on a card index, and if the parent of 
the child cannot afford the necessary expenses of treatment, the law 
provides that the school corporation shall pay the expenses. 


LESSON TEN 


Practical Politics. Elections (Primary, General, City and Special). 

Registration. Political Party Organization. 

Indiana voters, if they fulfill their political duties, must go to 
a polling precinct three times in each of three years out of four; 
nine times in four years for regularly held registrations and elec¬ 
tions. Special elections are sometimes necessary because of vacan¬ 
cies occurring in the office of state or national Senator or Repre¬ 
sentative. Special local elections are sometimes necessary, also. 

Regular There are three kinds of elections held regu- 

Elections. larly in every four years. 

1. General. Two in the four-year period, one in each Novem¬ 
ber of the even-numbered years. Must be held every two years, 
because the term of office of Congressman, state Representatives, 
some state and some county officers, is for two years. Constitu¬ 
tional requirement. 

2. City. One in every four years, for city officers’ terms are 
for that length of time. The election is held in November of the 
odd-numbered year, following Leap Year. 

3. Primary. Three in the four-year period, for primaries are 
held in Indiana in May of every year in which elections, general or 
city, are held in November. Precinct committeemen and delegates 
to the state convention (held in the big general election year— 
Leap Year) are elected at the primaries, and all candidates (except¬ 
ing * state officers and state court judges) are nominated for elec¬ 
tion the following November. 


Registration. The state constitution requires registration of 
voters. Sec. 14, Art. II. 

The Registration Laws have been changed many times. The 
new law passed by the 1919 Assembly repealed the 1917 law, which 
repealed the 1913, which repealed the 1911. It is not necessary to 
go back further in registration law history. A registration con¬ 
stitutional amendment is pending. (Lesson One.) 

Sessions.—Sat- The new law, (Acts, 1919, Chap. 186) is much 

urday, Monday, briefer than the law of 1917. 

Held on two days only. 

The first is the 59th day before election day (September Ses¬ 
sion). 


and Viop Pr^flnt r ??r r T I i 0r + United States Senators (also the President 
d Vice-President of the United States) may be nominated in the Primary. 

32 



The second is the 29th day before election day (October Ses¬ 
sion). 

The County Auditor must give a ten (10) day notice of time 
and place of registration by publication in newspapers and notices 
posted in public places. 

Hours. From 1 p. m. to 9 p. m. Board remains in session un¬ 
til books are completed, signed and certified. 

Registration Two clerks in every precinct. 

Officers. An inspector and two clerks in voting machine 

precincts. 

Two additional clerks may be appointed if any 
precinct had 600 or more voters at last general (or 
city) election. 

Precinct Changes, if made, must be made in March pre- 

Boundaries. ceding the election, unless voting machines are to 
be used for the first time, and two or more pre¬ 
cincts are to be combined into one. In this case, precinct lines may 
be changed on or before the first Monday in June. 

Voters must fill out and sign the application blanks furnished 
by the election authorities. At least ten (10) days before the regis¬ 
tration session, blanks may be placed at some place in the precinct, 
“so that the voters therein may conveniently obtain them before the 
day of registration.” The application form covers name, age, resi¬ 
dence, place of birth, and, if a foreigner, his naturalization status. 
Verified applications may be sent by mail to the registration board. 

Primaries Most 1. On the theory that there are more good 
Important. than evil citizens in most of the voting units of the 

state, good government, through law-abiding and 
law-enforcing officials can be assured, if all, or at least the best, citi¬ 
zens went to the primaries, for in that event none but good men 
would be nominated by any party, and the following November elec¬ 
tion could not be disastrous. 

2. With the fact of present-day politics, that party organiza¬ 
tion leaders influence to a great extent the officers elected to make, 
interpret and execute laws, primaries are doubly important, for 
party leaders are determined by the precinct committeemen elected 
at the primaries, and party principles are set forth in the platforms 
of conventions whose delegates are also elected at the primaries. It 
is a deplorable fact that the primaries are not yet recognized as the 
most important of all elections, with the result that citizens who 
regard a public office as a means to private gains, instead of public 
good, go to the primaries in May. When November comes, the well- 
meaning voter goes to the polls, to learn only too often that he must 
choose which is the least objectionable of candidates, all of whom 
are unqualified, instead of which is the best of candidates, all of 
whom are fit and trustworthy. Hence, if a voter feels that he can¬ 
not give time and thought to both primary and general elections, he 
can serve his government best by work at the primaries, not yet 
perfect, but, if used, more democratic than convention methods. 


33 


Time of Primary In every even-numbered year and in the odd- 
—May, First numbered year following Leap year. 

Tuesday After By political parties who cast 10 per cent or more 
First Monday, of the vote for Secretary of State at the preceding 
general election. 

Other parties nominate candidates by petition or by convention 

nominations. , „ , ... . 

Candidates get their names on Primary ballots (1) by tiling pe¬ 
titions of voters; (2) by filing declaration of candidacy. 

Candidates for Governor, United States Senator, Vice-President 
and President file petition (names of 500 voters) with the secretary 


U± BtdlC. 

Delegates to the state convention file petition (10 county vot¬ 
ers) at least 20 days before primary with Clerk of the Circuit Court. 

Declarations of candidacies for state offices, for Congress, for 
the state Legislature, for judicial offices, and for prosecutor are 
filed with the secretary of state at Indianapolis. 

Candidates for county and township offices and for precinct 
committeemen file declarations with the Clerk of the Circuit Court 
at the county courthouse. All declarations must be filed not more 
than 60 nor less than 30 days before the Primary. No fees are nec¬ 


essary. 

Primary Elec- Clerk of Court must publish names and ad- 
tion Procedure, dresses of primary candidates, and the location of 
polling booths in each precinct in one paper of 
each political party, and mail copies to each township trustee, who 
must post them in at least three (3) public places in his township, 
ten days before the election—primary. 


Boards. Two. 1. County election Commissioners, three in 
number. Clerk of Court and two voters, one from 
each of the two political parties casting largest vote at the preceding 
general election, appointed by clerk upon nomination by county 
chairmen. 

2. Precinct election boar dand officers. Consists of “one in¬ 
spector, two judges, two clerks, two sheriffs and one poll book hold¬ 
er for each participating political party.” The county chairmen 
nominate these precinct board members in writing to Board of elec¬ 
tion commissioners at least five (5) days before the primary. In¬ 
spector must be taken from party casting largest vote at preceding 
election, a judge from the next party. Only two parties can partici¬ 
pate in primaries in Indiana—the Republican and the Democratic. 

The qualifications of members of the precinct election board 
are as follows: All must be voters of precinct. Inspectors and 
judges must have been free-holders and resident householders for 
one year or resident householders for two years immediately preced¬ 
ing day of election. Anyone holding an appointive or elective office 
under Federal, state, county or city government, or relatives (with¬ 
in certain degrees) of any candidate, is not eligible for precinct 
election board, inspector and judges. 

Election Day The conduct of the elections is practically the 
Procedure. same on election day for primary, general and city 
elections. 


34 


The election paraphernalia has been provided for by the county 
commissioners. The inspector obtains the ballots from the clerk, 
and the registration books from the county auditor. 

Ballots. For primary elections, each party has a differ¬ 

ently colored ballot. 

For general elections, state ballots and ballot boxes are red. 
(City also.) County ballots and ballot boxes are white. Township 
ballots and ballot boxes are yellow. 

Sample. For instruction of voters, sample ballots are 

furnished. They must be of different colors from 
genuine ballots, be plainly marked as sample ballots and state the 
color of the genuine ballots. 

Paster ballots for voters who wish to vote for candidates not on 
printed tickets are printed in plain black ink on white paper, not 
more than two inches wide. A complete ticket to be pasted on state 
or local ticket, leaving squares open for marking choice. Must be 
folded so that paster does not show. 

Election Ballots and copies of laws (according to the 

Supplies. election), talley sheets, blanks for returns, poll 

books, 20 copies each of 5 different kinds of affi¬ 
davits, copies of 4 kinds of oaths, at least 5 paper bags, big envelope 
for affidavits, stick of sealing wax, 4 blotters, 3 penholders, 6 steel 
pens, darning needle and thread, as many blue pencils as voting 
booths, besides tables, chairs, rope and ballot boxes. 

The inspector is responsible for the preparation of the room 
and booths, the erection of the chutes (opening must be 50 feet from 
entrance to poll), the posting of the sample ballots and cards of 
instructions, for the organization of the precinct board, for the 
opening of the ballot packages, for the examination and sealing of 
the ballot boxes, and the announcement at 6 a. m. that the polls are 
open. 

The poll clerks must place their initials, in ink, on lower left- 
hand corner of the back of each ballot, and 25 of each kind must be 
kept ready for delivery to the voters. The voter announces his name 
on entrance into the room, and, if name is on registration book, the 
clerk gives him a ballot and blue pencil; and after he has voted, given 
his ballots to the inspector, his pencil to the clerk, the inspector 
deposits the ballots in the box, and the clerk records the name as 
voted. Australian secret ballot system. 

If voting machines are used, and a voter cannot so vote, he must 
make an affidavit to that effect, and the polling clerk must instruct 
or assist him. 

The inspector must keep clerks supplied with 25 ballots, deposit 
ballots after voters mark them, closes polls at 6 p. m., destroy pen¬ 
cils, place mutilated and unvoted ballots of each party (after count- 
ing'them) in separate bags, seal and mark them. See that the elec¬ 
tion officers subscribe their names. The inspector opens one bal¬ 
lot box, takes one ballot out at a time, reads it aloud in view of one 
judge while each clerk tallies. The ballot is then handed to the 
other'judge, who strings it. After one box is emptied, its ballots 
must be counted and put in bag, which must be sealed, labelled and 

35 


signed, and the return sheet also signed before another box is 
opened. When the entire vote is counted, the inspector must take 
bags and envelope, all securely sealed, to the clerk of the court. He 
must also return registration book and papers to the Auditor. 

The sheriffs preserve order, make arrests upon demand of one 
member of Board, or on affidavit, see that no more voters than elec¬ 
tion booths are in room at one time, that all but challengers and poll 
book holders are kept at a fifty-foot distance. They must also help 
infirm or decrepit persons into room. 

The judges keep the key of ballot box, inspect and string ballots 
when canvassed and sign returns and bags. 

The challengers and poll book holders stand at the sides of the 
chute. The grounds for challenge are: (1) Voter not legally quali¬ 
fied; (2) Bribery; (3) Disfranchisement by a state court for a period 
of time covering day of election. Primary only (4) Party allegiance. 

Watchers. Each political party may have watchers at each 
precinct at the precinct canvass of the vote. No watchers can be 
present during the voting. 

After the precinct returns are made to the clerk of the court, 
the vote must be canvassed and tabulated by the county election 
commissioners. (Vote for precinct committeemen excepted as the 
precinct board count is final). In the Primaries, the county board 
makes the final canvass of the votes cast for all offices wholly 
within the county. 

It canvasses the vote in its county for candidates in districts 
composed of two or more counties, and sends the tabulation by reg¬ 
istered mail to the secretary of state for final canvass by the State 
Board of Canvassers. 

In general elections the County Boards of Election Commis¬ 
sioners make certified statements which are given to the clerk of 
the court with the canvass sheets of the election. Clerks make out 
certificates of votes for legislators elected from their county jointly 
with another or other counties, and give them to the sheriff. The 
sheriffs of the two or more counties in the district meet on a certain 
day at the courthouse of the oldest county in the district and com¬ 
pare their certificates, jointly make out and give the person having 
the highest number of votes for senator or representative (state) 
his certificate of election. 

The Clerks of the Circuit Courts send certified statements to the 
secretary of state of the number of votes given to each person for 
the state offices. The Secretary of State compares and estimates 
these statements of votes in the presence of the Governor and cer¬ 
tifies to him the persons receiving the highest number of votes for 
such offices, and the Governor transmits the required commissions 
to those entitled to them. 

Political Party Organization. 

The territorial units of political party organization in Indiana 
according to its primary law are four: 

1. Precinct. Number varies. 3142 are given in the 1918 
Year Book. 

2. County. There are 92 counties in the State. 

36 


3. Congressional District. There are 13 congressional dis¬ 
tricts. 

4. State. 

Each of these units has a chairman and a committee. 

The precinct committeemen are elected at the May primaries. 
Under the law they organize on the Saturday following the primary 
into respective county committees who choose their respective 
chairmen. These county chairmen likewise become district com¬ 
mittees, who choose district chairmen who are the state central com¬ 
mittee and choose the state chairman of the party. 

Voters have no part in party organization after electing the 
precinct committeemen on primary election day. The organization 
builds itself up. The law provides thirty days for this organization. 

County Chairmen must be chosen on Saturday afternoon after 
the Tuesday primary by the precinct committeemen elected by the 
voters on that day. District chairmen are chosen by the county 
chairmen who assemble in their respective districts a few days after 
the Saturday election, organize as district committees and elect dis¬ 
trict chairmen. 

A few days later—within 30 after the primary—the district 
chairmen meet in Indianapolis and elect a chairman. 

Each man in the organization has two-fold duties and powers. 
He is a chairman of one unit—precinct committeemen are chairmen 
of their precincts—and a member of the next higher unit. 

1915 Primary Law. 

The first Tuesday after the first Monday in May is Primary 
Election Day. Voters in each of the 3,142 precincts of the State 
elect one of the 3,142 Precinct Committeemen (Chairman of Pre¬ 
cinct) . 

County Chairman Day—Saturday After Primary. 

3,142 PRECINCT CHAIRMEN assemble in County Seats, organize 
as 92 COUNTY COMMITTEES and elect 92 COUNTY CHAIRMEN. 

District Chairman Day—A few days later. 

92 COUNTY CHAIRMEN assemble in respective districts, organize 
as 13 DISTRICT COMMITTEES and elect 13 DISTRICT CHAIR¬ 
MEN. 

State Chairman Day—A few days later. 

13 DISTRICT CHAIRMEN meet at Indianapolis, organize as 
STATE CENTRAL COMMITTEE and elect a STATE CHAIRMAN. 

Every woman can know her own precinct and help elect one of 
its best citizens as Committeeman, and thus help build up the right 
kind of party organizations. . , , , j 

At the state convention, for which delegates are elected at the 
primaries, candidates for all state offices are nominated, including 
also those of United States Senator and Governor, if they have not 
been nominated in the primary preceding the convention. Dele¬ 
gates to the national convention are chosen at the state convention. 

Presidential Electors are chosen at the general election held m 
Leap Year. The ballot that year is a long one. 

37 


Until the Federal suffrage amendment is ratified by 36 states, 
women in Indiana can vote only for presidential electors, but the 
time is short until they, with all other women of the United States, 
will have full electorate power. 

Instructions concerning voting, and practical questions on 
Indiana governmental matters will be found in each issue of the 
Message, beginning with the November number. 


38 


TEN LESSONS ON NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 


LESSON ONE 
Democracy. 

Definitions. Rule of the many. From two Greek words. Used 
by Plato. Lincoln’s was “Government of the people, by the people 
and for the people.” Giddings 1919 definition is “Democracy is the 
rule of an entire politically organized people, in which men and 
women vote as individuals and not as members of religious bodies, 
social classes, business corporations, labor organizations or local 
groups.” He adds, “Democracy is in the world to stay. When the 
war of 1914 began, the free peoples said, “The Kings must go.” They 
are gone. Now the free peoples are saying, “Class rule must go. 
The people are supreme.” 

It has been a long, long trail from Plato’s ideal Republic, a book 
written nearly 400 years B. C., to the present-day active, living 
republican forms of government in Switzerland, the United States, 
England and France. On this way to democracy, many men, in fact, 
every leader for the rights of the people, have suffered imprison¬ 
ment, exile or death. Of the Greeks, Socrates was permitted to kill 
himself. His pupil, Plato, was sold as a slave and ransomed before 
he was permitted to teach; Plato’s pupil, Aristotle, was not sent into 
exile until near the close of his life, and after his work was prac¬ 
tically done. During the next 300 years, the Greeks tried out some 
forms of democracy, but finally were forced to become a province of 
the rapidly-growing Roman government, soon to hold in its power 
the entire civilized world. 

Then came a new teacher of democracy. Born in Palestine, one 
of the most obscure of the Roman provinces, of Hebrew parentage 
and training, after teaching and exemplifying for a few short years 
the fundamental principles of real democracy, he, too, was killed. 
The lawgiver of his race antedated Solon, and Draco of Athens and 
Sparta by nearly a thousand years, and the Hebrew philosophers, 
seers of social conditions, lived centuries before Socrates, Plato and 
Aristotle. 

In the centuries following the death of the peasant, carpenter 
teacher of Galilee, the Roman government gradually disintegrated, 
and the institution, the church built upon the teachings of the Gali¬ 
lean, increased in power, and during several centuries, the Dark 
Ages, was the only security for life and liberty of thought and ac¬ 
tion. Then the church itself became corrupt, a hierachy utterly 
disregarding the rights of the people; but the torch of democracy 
was not entirely extinguished, and in the thirteenth century the 
light of its principles began to be seen in written documents. The 
Magna Charta of England (1215), and the written compact of the 
Swiss cantons (1291). The sermons and death of Savonarola m 
Italv (1492-98), the writings and deeds of Luther m Germany (1517- 
46 ) of Zwingli in Switzerland (1516-31), of Calvin in France and, 
when banished, in Switzerland (1528-64), of Knox in Scotland 

39 



(1505-72), all helped in the evolution of present day democracy. 
Men and women began to follow the democratic teachings of these 
leaders, who always regarded the Bible as an “intensely political 
book.” And when, in consequence, persecution arose in Europe, 
these men and women left home and country and came to a new 
continent to put into practice the rule of the majority instead of the 
minority of the people. Two wars with the mother country, the 
Revolution and the war of 1812-15, one with Mexico (1845-48), the 
dreadful Civil struggle of 1861-65, and the war with Spain (1898- 
1900) is the record of the struggle for democracy in the North 
American continent up to the twentieth century. Finally came the 
great world war, when, without warning and preparation, all the 
so-called great democracies were forced to unite in war against the 
most inhuman and cruel autocracy in the world’s history. As or¬ 
ganized warfare, the struggle is over, kings and emperors are pri¬ 
vate citizens or living in exile, but Russia, China, Korea and Arme¬ 
nia are still struggling for life and liberty, and in England, France, 
Belgium and the United States there is unrest and distress, even 
want and hunger. One of the results of the war has been the expan¬ 
sion of democracy to give women a voice in government. If this 
means but the doubling of the present vote, if women are not more 
intelligent, conscientious and faithful in electorate duties than have 
been the men, the great war will have been fought in vain. Democ¬ 
racy means responsibility for government. The womanhood of 
England, France and America will surely “hold high the torch taken 
from falling hands and not break faith with those who” died in 
Flanders fields and Argonne’s forests. 

Topics for Brief Papers and Discussion. 

The Mosaic Law. The Social Teachings of Isaiah, Hosea, Amos, 
Micah and other Hebrew seers of social and political conditions cen¬ 
turies ago. 

The Greek lawgivers, Solon and Draco. The Philosophers, Soc¬ 
rates, Plato and Aristotle. The Greek Democracies. 

The Magna Charta of England. 

The Swiss Confederacy. The Italian Republics and Principali¬ 
ties. 

The political teachings of Savonarola, Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, 
Huss and Knox. 

South American Republics. Origin of their Constitutions. 


LESSON TWO 

The Constitution of the United States. 

The Constitution of the United States is recognized as the most 
remarkable document the world has ever had. It provides for a 
government vested in three departments, legislative, executive and 
judicial, co-ordinate in power excepting the Supreme Court’s power 
to determine the constitutionality of the Acts of Congress. 

The constitution was made in 1787 by fifty-five delegates from 
twelve states in a four months convention (May to September) held 

40 



m Philadelphia. Sixty-five delegates had been chosen, but ten did 
not attend. Sixteen declined signing the Constitution or left the 
convention before it was ready for signature. Thirty-nine signed. 
After it was printed and sent to the States, there was a bitter rati¬ 
fication fight, and a “veritable flood of literature descended upon the 
country.” Nine states, however, ratified the Constitution by June, 
1788, elections were held, the new Congress secured a quorum on 
April 6,1789, and Washington was inaugurated on April 30 as Presi¬ 
dent of a new Republic. 


Amendments. 

The Constitution was not satisfactory, however, and the next 
year ten amendments were added to it, to fulfill the demand for a 
bill of rights. The eleventh amendment concerns the jurisdiction of 
the United States Supreme Court. The twelfth amendment, adopt¬ 
ed in 1803, corrected defects in election provisions of President and 
Vice-President. The President and Vice-President of the United 
States are not elected directly by the people. The Presidential elec¬ 
tion is held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November 
of the even-numbered year divisible by four. Each state has as 
many presidential electors for the “electoral college,” which meets 
on the second Monday of January following the election, as it has 
Senators and Representatives in Congress. The voters cast their 
ballots for the presidential electors previously chosen by the politi¬ 
cal parties to cast the final vote in January. As the electors’ names 
are for the most part on the party column ticket, the result of the 
election is soon known. The makers of the constitution never con¬ 
templated the national convention with its nomination of presiden¬ 
tial candidate months before the election of the presidential elec¬ 
tors, but it has proved the most practical method. 

More than half a century passed before another change was 
made, though much was done by statutory elaboration and judicial 
expansion of the constitution. The nation had to suffer much an¬ 
guish and lose thousands of its best men before the thirteenth and 
fourteenth amendments were ratified. The fifteenth, giving suf¬ 
frage to the negro, ratified in 1870, completed the political changes 
made by the Civil War. 

The next amendment came forty-three years later, after a Su¬ 
preme Court decision that Congress could not enact an income tax 
law. The decision was given in 1895, the amendment proclaimed in 
force in 1913, after eighteen years of amendment effort. Congress 
has “power to lay and collect taxes on incomes.” 

The next amendment concerned the Senate. The method of 
the election of the Senators had long been unsatisfactory, but every 
attempt to change the constitutional provision, so that “the people” 
could elect them directly, instead of indirectly through the state 
legislatures, though successful in the lower house of Congress, 
failed in the Senate until 1911, when a resolution providing for pop¬ 
ular election was finally adopted. Then came a “deadlock” of a year 
between the Senate and the Southern Democrats of the House. The 
House finally yielded, and the people of the nation, ashamed of the 
disgraceful proceedings in the state legislatures when electing 

41 


United States Senators, speedily ratified the seventeenth amend¬ 
ment to the constitution. 

The eighteenth amendment is as follows: After one year from 
the ratification of this article, the manufacture, sale or transporta¬ 
tion of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or 
the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory 
subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby 
prohibited. 

The Resolution was adopted by Congress in December, 1917, 
the 36th, 37th and 38th states ratified the amendment on the same 
day, January 16, 1919, and before the end of February following, 
forty-five states had ratified. Only three states, New Jersey, Con¬ 
necticut and little Rhode Island, stubborn even in ratifying the Con¬ 
stitution, have refused. The amendment becomes effective in Janu¬ 
ary, 1920, thus placing the United States first among the nations .of 
the earth in brain and body conservation and development of its 
people. 

The Susan B. Anthony amendment resolution extending the 
right of suffrage to women was adopted in June, 1919, by the Sen¬ 
ate, after its adoption by the House in May. The Amendment is as 
follows: “The right of a citizen of the United States to vote shall not 
be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on ac¬ 
count of sex.” When this amendment, the nineteenth, is ratified by 
three-fourths of the states, the long, inexplicable struggle of Amer¬ 
ica’s best and most intelligent women and men to make most of the 
men understand that they could not make government successful 
without the help of women will be ended. The great world war, with 
its frightful loss of millions of men and boys was evidence in no 
uncertain terms that something was radically wrong in government 
among the most civilized of nations, that something was needed in 
government that it had not had up to the present time. The unrest 
and suffering since the war is added evidence of the need of help 
in solving the problems of democratic government. 

The eighteenth and nineteenth amendments to the constitution 
of the United States may save the nation from the fate which has 
hitherto befallen all Republics. 

The Constitution consists of a short preamble, seven (7) Arti¬ 
cles, four (4) of which are subdivided into sections, and eighteen 
(18) Amendments. 

A nineteenth amendment granting suffrage to women has 
been submitted by Congress to the state legislatures for ratification. 

Preamble. “We the People of the United States” is the begin¬ 
ning, “in order to 

(1) form a more perfect union, 

(2) establish justice, 

(3) insure domestic tranquility, 

(4) provide for the common defense, 

(5) promote general welfare, 

(6) secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our pos¬ 
terity, do ordain and establish this constitution for the United States 
of America.” 

Art. 1. Legislative branch of government. Ten (10) sections, 
and more than half of the original constitution. 

42 


Art. II. Executive branch. Four (4) sections. Qualifications, 
oath of office, powers and duties of President. Does not contain the 
word “cabinet.” 

Art. III. Judicial branch. Three (3) sections. Provides for a 
Supreme Court, and gives Congress the power to “ordain and estab¬ 
lish” inferior courts. Defines treason, and gives Congress the power 
to punish for treason. 

Art. IV. States Rights, admission of new states, Federal guar¬ 
antee to every State in the Union of a republican form of govern¬ 
ment, and Federal protection against (1) invasion and (2) domes¬ 
tic violence, on application of Legislature or Executive. 

Art. V. Amendment process. Two methods of both proposal 
and ratification. (1) Two-thirds of both houses of Congress, may 
propose amendments, or (2) The Legislatures of two-thirds of the 
several states may apply to Congress to call a convention for propos¬ 
ing amendments. 

Ratification (1) By the Legislatures of three-fourths of the 
states, or if Congress so provides (2) By conventions in three- 
fourths of the several states. 

The 18 amendments which have become a part of the constitu¬ 
tion up to the present time have been proposed by Congress and rati¬ 
fied by Legislatures. 


LESSON THREE 

Congress. The Legislative Branch of Government. Const. Art. I. 

Consists of two houses, the Senate, 96 members, and the House 
of Representatives, 435 members. It meets in the Capitol Building 
at Washington. Is of two years’ duration, beginning the first Mon¬ 
day of December of each odd-numbered year for its first long ses¬ 
sion and the first Monday in December of the even-numbered years 
for its second short session, which must end on the 4th of March 
following. Special sessions may be held. 

The powers of Congress are enumerated in detail in Sec. 8 of 
Art. I. Except in military affairs, Congress has no such powers as 
the British Parliament, but in military affairs, Congress has more 
power than any legislative body, Germany not excepted. 

Relation to the Federal Judiciary. 

The Supreme Court decides the constitutionality of the Acts of 
Congress. Congress determines the number and compensation of 
the Supreme Court judges and their appellate jurisdiction. 

Congress ordains and establishes the lower Federal Courts. Has 
fixed the number, salaries and jurisdiction of the nine Circuit Courts 
of Appeal and the 90 or more United States District Courts. 

The House institutes and the Senate, with the Chief Justice 
presiding, tries all impeachment cases. 

Relation to the Executive. 

The President can veto a bill of Congress. A vetoed bill re¬ 
quires a two-thirds majority roll call vote in each house for passage 
over the President’s veto. 


43 



The President cannot make treaties without the concurrence of 
two-thirds of the Senate. Nor can he appoint “ambassadors, other 
public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court” without 
“the advice and consent of the Senate.” Congress has vested the 
appointment of many officers in the President. Has created, defined 
the duties and fixed the salaries of executive departments. Can 
demand investigations of them also. 

Privileges of Members of Both Houses. 

Freedom from arrest. Freedom of speech and of franking 
speeches to constituents at home. Compensation of $7,500, with 
allowances for clerk, stationery and mileage. (Sec. 6, Art. I.) 

Each House is the judge of the elections, returns and qualifica¬ 
tions of its own members, and determines the rules of its own pro¬ 
ceedings. Each may punish its members for disorderly conduct, 
and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member. (Sec. 5.) 

Congressional Procedure. 

After the members assemble in their respective rooms, oaths of 
office are taken and rules adopted, a committee of each house noti¬ 
fies the other of its readiness for business. A joint committee noti¬ 
fies the President, who lays his message before each house, and the 
business of law-making begins. There is always a daily order of 
business, a calendar and a journal showing motions and votes there¬ 
on. One-fifth of the members may demand the “aye and nay”—roll 
call—that the people may know the votes of their representatives. 

Committees are not mentioned in the constitution, but legisla¬ 
tive work would now be impossible without them because of the vast 
amount of work necessary in the consideration of thousands of bills 
—proposed laws. Each House has many standing committees, 70 
more or less. These are controlled by a majority of members rep¬ 
resenting the dominant—at the time—political party. There are 
also select and joint committees for special business, and always a 
powerful “steering” committee of leading Senators and majority 
members of the House Committee on Rules. 

Law-Making Procedure. 

In the order of the day, a bill written and signed by member is 
sent to presiding officer’s desk, numbered, entered in journal, then 
referred by the presiding officer to one of the standing committees 
for consideration. The house may direct to what committee it shall 
go. (Friday is private bill day, claims and pensions, 6000 or 7000 
each Congress, nearly nine-tenths of whole order of business). From 
the great number of bills, the committees sift out worthy measures, 
hold hearings, often public for arguments for and against the meas¬ 
ures, and decide their fate. Bills may be 

1. Reported back—amended or unamended—favorably “that it 
do pass.” 

2. Thrown aside, and a new one substituted and reported out 
for passage. 

3. Reported unfavorably that “it do not pass.” 

4. Pigeonholed or smothered, not reported at all. 

44 


A favorably reported” bill has a good chance of enactment into 

law. 

After bills are reported out and placed upon the calendar, the 
process differs somewhat in the Senate and House. In both, how¬ 
ever, they must go through a second and third reading and a final 
vote, which may be taken in one or all of three ways: 

L Viva-voce. The members saying together aye or nay. 

2. Division. Those voting aye rise and are counted. Then 
those opposed do likewise. If this method of divisions is questioned, 
tellers may be appointed between whom the approving members 
first file and are counted, and then the opposing members. 

3. Roll call. May be demanded by one-fifth of the members, 
when the clerk must call the names of each member and record his 
vote in the journal. A time-consuming process in the lower house 
of 435 members. 

When passed by one house, the bill goes to the other for the 
same procedure. If passed unamended, it is taken to the President 
for signature. If he signs it, the Secretary of State receives it for 
official publication. If the second house amends the bill, it must go 
back to the house of its origin for concurrence or a conference com¬ 
mittee of members from both houses considers it jointly, and 
reaches some agreement, which is accepted by both bodies. 

If the President vetoes the bill, he sends it with his reasons to 
the house originating it. If two-thirds of the members vote for its 
repassage, it goes to the other house with the President’s objections 
for its second reconsideration. And if the second house, by a two- 
thirds roll-call vote, pass it, it becomes a law without the President’s 
signature, over his veto. 

The difference between Senate and House procedure is in the 
time on debate. The “previous question” can always be moved in 
the House. Since 1841, debate is limited in the House to one speech 
per member of one hour’s duration, except in case of author of bill 
and committee chairman reporting it. Senate debate is unlimited, 
and is often used for obstructing or delaying legislation. 

Mention must be made also of the so-called “third house”— 
the lobby—men and women interested in bills, who often know 
more about legislative procedure than do some of the legislators 
themselves. Lobbyists are necessary, but should be men or women 
interested in the welfare of the nation, not selfish seekers of private 
gains at the expense of public time, money and service. 


LESSON FOUR 

The Senate and the House of Representatives. 

The Senate of the United States consists of 96 members, two 
from each of 48 states, elected directly by popular vote since 1913, 
for a term of six years. A Senator must be at least .30 years of age, 
must have been a citizen for nine years of the United States, and 
must be an inhabitant of the state which he represents in Congress. 

The Senate is a “continuous body,” one-third of its members 
being elected every two years. Its rules, also, aie more peimanent 
than those of the lower House, and its presiding officer, the Vice- 

45 



President of the United States, is only a moderator, who votes only 
when the vote is tied. 

The standing committees of the Senate are nominated by two 
committees on committees. A caucus has previously determined 
the selecting committees. Senators are usually older men who have 
been state legislators, political party leaders or lawyers connected 
with powerful economic interests. Popular election has helped some¬ 
what in disarming criticism and removing dissatisfaction with the 
Senate, often called “the millionaires’ club.” One of the makers of 
the Constitution said, “The House of Representatives was so formed 
as to render it particularly the guardian of the poorer orders of citi¬ 
zens,” and Beard adds “while the Senate was to preserve the rights 
of property and the interests of the minority against the demands 
of the majority.” The Senators have the privilege of unlimited de¬ 
bate, which may become senatorial filibustering. 

No treaties can be made by the President without the concur¬ 
rence of two-thirds of the Senate, and its advice and concurrence is 
necessary for presidential appointments. Until the present year, 
1919, with few exceptions, this concurrence has been a matter of 
form; but, under the stress of the problems growing out of the great 
war, and because the President’s party is not at present the domi¬ 
nant party in Congress, the constitutional provision of Senate con¬ 
currence is much in evidence. It has made the nation thoughtful 
concerning the relation and co-ordination of governmental func¬ 
tions, and this is necessary in a real democracy. 

The House of Representatives. 

Consists of 435 members, one for every 211,877 inhabitants of 
the United States. Apportionment of representatives among the 
states is made every ten years after the decennial United States 
census. The state legislatures make the congressional districts ac¬ 
cording to this apportionment. Each state has two senators and one 
representative, however small it may be. The entire number of rep¬ 
resentatives is elected every two years for two-year terms. Many, of 
course, are re-elected. A Representative must be at least 25 years 
old, a citizen of the United States for seven years, and an inhabi¬ 
tant of the state which he represents. 

Unlike the Senate, the Lower House must organize for its work. 
The presiding officer, the Speaker, must be elected, a mere formal¬ 
ity, usually, for he has been determined upon by a previous caucus of 
members chosen by a few party leaders. The oath of office is then 
administered, and rules adopted. The standing committees are then 
elected. Until 1910, these committees were appointed by the 
Speaker. The custom of observing “seniority” in committee chair¬ 
manship is gradually changing. 

The powerful factors in the House are the Speaker, the Com¬ 
mittee on Rules and the chairmen of the standing committees. 

The Speaker is more like the British Prime Minister than the 
Speaker of the House of Commons, who is little more than a mod¬ 
erator, impartial and not responsible for party success. The Amer¬ 
ican Speaker is a party leader, and is responsible for his party’s 
measures in the House. He may refuse to put delaying or filibus- 

46 


tering motions, may insist upon members voting, may recognize, 
practically, whom he pleases. 

He has lost the power to appoint standing committees, and his 
membership in the Committee on Rules. 

The Committee on Rules formerly was appointed by the Speak¬ 
er, and consisted of five members, two majority and two minority, 
with the Speaker the fifth and deciding member. It now consists 
of eleven members, nominally elected by the House, but in fact only 
ratified after caucus election. It has practically the control of the 
course of business, directs what measures shall be considered and 
when, because it can, at any time, present a resolution “that a cer¬ 
tain bill be made a special order for a certain day.” 

The Minority in the house may, under the constitution, delay 
proceedings by demanding the “ayes and nays” roll call vote of 435 
members. May insist upon quorum and may refuse unanimous con¬ 
sent. 

The chairmen of the standing committees are important be¬ 
cause they often decide whether or not a bill is to get before the 
House for its action. 


LESSON FIVE 

President, Cabinet, Commissions. 

The Executive power is vested in the President of the United 
States, according to section 1 of Art. II. of the constitution. 

The word “cabinet” is not mentioned, but provision was made 
for the appointment of “inferior officers * * * in the heads of de¬ 
partments” and for “the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer 
in each of the executive departments.” Sec. 2. 

The President has enormous power and responsibility, far more 
than the King of England. This power has been given by the con¬ 
stitution, by usage and by congress. He is commander-in-chief of 
the army, navy and state militias. Sec. 2. 

He is responsible for more than 6,000 appointments. Among 
these are the ten Cabinet members, the judges of the Supreme and 
inferior Federal Courts, and all officials to foreign countries. Sen¬ 
ate concurrence is necessary in appointment, but not in removal. 

Senators and Representatives practically appoint the Federal 
officials of the states when they belong to the same party as the 
President. The “patronage” is definitely divided. 

He can issue “regulation ordinances” (thus supplementing 
statutes), and has enormous “power of direction,” tells his depart¬ 
ments what to do. 

He cannot be arrested until judgment has been pronounced 
through impeachment proceedings. He grants reprieves and par¬ 
dons for United States offenses. 

The White House at Washington is the President’s private and 
official residence. His salary is $75,000 per year, but he is fur¬ 
nished an Executive Mansion—the White House—executive offices, 
traveling expenses and some additional allowances. The sums set 
apart for the President’s use in recent years aggregate a quarter of 
a million dollars, more or less. 


47 



The Cabinet began in 1793, with five Departments. There are 
now ten, and more are being demanded by the people. 

Unlike England or France, the Cabinet or Ministry does not 
depend upon the legislative branch—Congress—for continuance in 
office, but is subject only to the Chief Executive, the President. 
Congress, however, has prescribed its duties in United States stat¬ 
utes, and the Secretary of the Treasury is really under Congression¬ 
al control. The salary of Cabinet members is $12,000. 

The Cabinet meets regularly at stated times, its meetings are 
secret, no record is kept of transactions, and if votes are taken after 
deliberation of important matters, it is regarded as only an “expres¬ 
sion of opinions.” The Lincoln incident, when he closed a meeting 
in which every member was against him by saying, “Seven nays, 
one aye; the ayes have it,” is illustrative. The ten chief depart¬ 
ments of government are as follows: 

STATE—Secretary, three assistant secretaries, chief clerk, 
counsellor, eight bureaus—diplomatic, consular, indexes and ar¬ 
chives, accounts, rolls and library, appointments, trade relations and 
citizenship; seven divisions of affairs—Far Eastern, Near Eastern, 
Near Western, European, Latin-American, Mexican and informa¬ 
tion. 

TREASURY—Secretary and four assistant secretaries, chief 
clerk, auditors for departments, comptroller and register of the 
treasury, treasurer of the United States, comptroller of currency, 
director of the mint, commissioner of internal revenue, public health 
service, revenue cutter service, bureau of printing and engraving, 
life-saving service, secret service. 

WAR—Secretary and three assistant secretaries, more than 
forty different chiefs and directors, who are responsible for the 
army, national defense and the rivers and harbors of the country. 

NAYY—Secretary and assistant secretary, chief clerk, presi¬ 
dents of examining and retiring boards, chiefs of eight or more 
bureaus, commandant of marine corps, a judge advocate general. 

POSTOFFICE—Postmaster General and four assistants, five 
divisions—dead letters, postal savings, money orders, foreign mails, 
appointment of postmasters, chief inspector, chief clerk. 

INTERIOR—Secretary and two assistant secretaries; commis¬ 
sioners and directors have charge of pensions, public lands, patents; 
the Indians, mines, parks, various surveys and education. 

JUSTICE—Attorney General, solicitor general and several as¬ 
sistants, solicitors for all departments do the legal work for the gov¬ 
ernment. The attorney general is the President’s legal advisor. 

AGRICULTURE—Secretary and six assistant secretaries, 
chiefs of bureaus, animal industry, plant industry, markets, soils, 
crops estimates, forest service, public roads, insects and insecticides, 
biological survey, publications. 

COMMERCE—Secretary and assistant, chiefs of bureaus, for¬ 
eign and domestic commerce, coast and geodetic surveys, census, 
standards, fisheries, light-houses. 

LABOR—Secretary and assistant, labor statistics, immi¬ 
gration, United States employment service, adjustment service, in¬ 
vestigation and inspecting service, working conditions, industrial 

48 


housing and transportation, women in industry, children’s bureau. 
Women are directing the work of the last two bureaus. Women will 
ere long fill cabinet positions. 

In addition to these ten departments of administration of gov¬ 
ernment, a number of Commissions and Boards have been created. 
Of these, the most important are the Civil Service Commission and 
the Interstate Commerce Commission. The story of their evolution 
is a long one, but the first was necessary because of the abuse of the 
spoils system of Federal appointments, and the second because of 
the trouble with corporations doing business in different states. 
The civil Service Act was passed in 1883 to provide some way for 
the selection of the army of government employes, several hundred 
thousand in number. Under the “merit system,” fitness for office 
instead of reward for political party service, more than two-thirds 
of the officers and employes have been chosen after a competitive 
examination. The Commission keeps lists of eligibles for each de¬ 
partment, and when called upon sends the names of three at the 
head of the list. One is chosen, the others returned. Honorably 
discharged soldiers and sailors are given first preference. As far 
as possible, appointments are apportioned among the states ac¬ 
cording to population. As a rule, private secretaries, assistant 
bureau chiefs and attorneys are exempt from examination. The 
annual report should be read. 

The Interstate Commerce Commission consists of seven mem¬ 
bers appointed by the President, with Senate, under an Act passed 
by Congress in 1887. The original act has been changed much by 
amendatory and supplementary laws. One of these is the famous 
Sherman anti-trust act. There have been several suits in court— 
the Standard Oil, the Tobacco Trust and Sugar Trust cases, but 
trusts are not yet regulated. Roosevelt once said, in his vigorous 
way, “Much of the legislation, not only proposed, but enacted against 
trusts, is not one whit more intelligent than the medieval Bull 
against a comet, and has not been one particle more effective.” It is 
all a puzzling present-day problem, but the time will come for its 
solution. There are many administrative boards and commissions 
besides those given. 


LESSON SIX 

The Federal Judiciary and the Department of Justice. 

The United States Constitution provides for one Supreme 
Court and “such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to 
time ordain and establish.” (Sec. 1, Art. III.) It provides for the 
appointment of the judges by the President, with the advice and 
consent of the Senate. (Sec. 2, Art. II.) 

The Constitution says also that “the judges, both of the Su¬ 
preme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good be¬ 
havior,” which means usually life terms of office. 

The jurisdiction of the Supreme and inferior courts is given in 
Sec 2 Art. III. 

* Under* these constitutional provisions, Congress has made the 
following plan of Federal Courts: 

49 



I. Supreme Court. One Chief Justice and eight associate jus¬ 
tices. Held in Capitol building from October to May. Silk robes 
and much ceremony. Six judges must be present, and five may 
determine decision. Cases are presented by arguments, briefs or 
both. The Chief Justice writes or asks another justice to write “the 
opinion of the court.” All the judges may write opinions “concur¬ 
ring” or “dissenting.” All opinions are officially published in vol¬ 
umes—U. S. Reports—of which there may be three or four in a sin¬ 
gle term, and these volumes constitute the authority on constitu¬ 
tional law. (Salary of Chief Justice, $15,000; of associate justices, 
$14,500.) 

II. Nine Circuit Courts of Appeal. The 48 states of the Union 
are grouped into nine great districts, each of which has a justice of 
the Supreme Court for its chief, and several Circuit Judges (31 in all 
in the nine districts at the present time). These courts were cre¬ 
ated to relieve the Supreme Court by caring for the appeals from 
the lower Federal Courts, but it is not difficult to raise the question 
of constitutionality, and thereby appeal directly from the lower to 
the Supreme Court. (Salary, $7,000.) 

III. U. S. District Courts. The territory of the United States, 
including Alaska, Hawaii, Porto Rico and the Canal Zone is divided 
into Districts. Each of the less populous states is a single district, 
but some states are divided into two or more districts, and some dis¬ 
tricts are subdivided into divisions, so that there are about one hun¬ 
dred United States District Judges, each with a District Attorney 
(the Prosecutor), a Marshal and other court officers. 

The jurisdiction of the federal District Court includes too many 
matters to be enumerated, but among them are questions pertain¬ 
ing to internal revenue, postal and copyright affairs, bankruptcy 
proceedings, immigration and naturalization of aliens, contract 
labor, restraints and monopolies of trade and commerce, violation of 
Federal liquor laws. Decisions may be appealed to the next higher 
Federal court, the Circuit Court of Appeals, whose decision is final 
in most cases, unless constitutionality is involved, when cases may 
be appealed to the Supreme Court at Washington. 

There are two other United States Courts, (1) Court of Claims, 
a presiding judge with four assistant judges to hear claims against 
the federal government and relieve somewhat political pressure on 
Congress; (2) Court of Customs Appeal, a presiding judge and four 
associates to review decisions made by Appraising Board. (The 
Court of Commerce was abolished in 1913.) 

In close relation to the federal judiciary is the Department of 
Justice. Its head, the Attorney General, directs an army of assist¬ 
ants, solicitors for each department of government, the United 
States District Attorneys and Marshals of the lower Federal Courts 
and the officials in the federal prisons and reformatories. 

He is the chief law officer of the Federal government. He rep¬ 
resents the United States in legal questions, appears in Supreme 
Court for very important questions, advises the President and Cabi¬ 
net members, gives special counsel when required to any depart¬ 
ment. 

All the federal courts have the power to issue the three—so 
called—“great writs:” (1) Habeas Corpus (you may have the body.) 

50 


The light of an imprisoned person to an immediate preliminary hear¬ 
ing to discover the reason for imprisonment. (2) Mandamus (we 
command). An order to force a public official, private person or cor¬ 
poration to do something required by law. Sometimes used to com¬ 
pel a lower court to pass upon something, a matter in its jurisdic¬ 
tion. (3) Injunction. A court order prohibiting the doing or the 
not doing of certain acts. Was brought into politics because Fed¬ 
eral courts have issued injunctions in labor disputes. In 1908, both 
leading political parties asked for changes. There are many ques¬ 
tions of government still to be studied and decided upon before jus¬ 
tice obtains, even in the best-governed countries. The power of the 
Supreme Court to decide the constitutionality of United States and 
state statutes has been bitterly discussed for many years, as well as 
the power of the “great writs.” 

It has been said many times in late years, in the press and from 
pulpit and platform, that if justice were administered with absolute 
impartiality for rich and poor alike, if the rich law-breaker or evad¬ 
er, a violator of his obligations, whose acts are more reprehensible 
because of his superior opportunities, paid the penalty for wrong¬ 
doing as does the poor, there would be no Socialism in America. The 
Carnegie Foundation has issued a book of 250 pages entitled “Jus¬ 
tice and the Poor,” and in discussing it a noted lawyer has said, “The 
time has come to set our house in order.” Poor men cannot appeal 
to higher courts, and immigrants especially are often victims, who 
soon recognize injustice. 

For years, especially in municipal government, there have been 
campaigns in which the issue between the candidates for mayor was 
on “law enforcement.” Grim and foreboding irony! A condition in 
politics, the science of government, that shows something is wrong 
in the American citizen’s conception (1) of the value of law and (2) 
the real source and example of lawlessness. Indeed, it is being said 
that there is more lawlessness, more violations of constitutional, 
statutory and ordinance law by men in control of government than 
by the men governed. No nation has ever endured long when law 
violations by those in power were disregarded, and if the American 
nation is to endure, its office holders must themselves be the most 
rigid respecters and observers of the law. 

Law in a republic, the will of the majority, is supreme, and the 
courts must have the unqualified respect and even reverence of the 
masses of the people if government is to endure. Any officer of 
government who does not himself obey the law, is undermining gov¬ 
ernment, and the most dangerous violations of law are those made 
by men who fail to enforce it, though sworn so to do in support of 
government. 

In not a few cities or counties of a few states, but of many, the 
plain citizen often feels that it is hopeless to remedy bad local con¬ 
ditions unless the Federal courts can be invoked. This situation 
has made women want the vote more than all the other reasons com¬ 
bined, and has made them also Federalists. They want a Federal 
law for everything that concerns the home and the children’s wel¬ 
fare. 


51 


LESSON SEVEN 

International Affairs, Diplomatic and Consular Service. 

The United States Constitution says the President “shall have 
power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make 
treaties, provided two-thirds of the Senators present concur; shall 
nominate and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate shall 
appoint ambassadors * * * and consuls” (Sec. 2, Art. II.) ; “he shall 
receive ambassadors” (Sec. 3). 

The President is therefore the official spokesman with other 
nations, through the Secretary of State, whose Department of State 
was at first called the Department of Foreign Affairs. Every com¬ 
munication, whatever its nature, bears the signature of the Sec¬ 
retary of State before it can be sent to a foreign country. 

The United States has two classes of representatives in foreign 
countries. 

Diplomatic, subdivided into (a) Ambassadors extraordinary 
and plenipotentiary, about 12 in number, (b) Envoys extraordinary 
and ministers plenipotentiary, about 30, (c) ministers resident, and 
(d) charges d’affaires (secretaries), about 40. This branch of the 
foreign service takes care of the transmission of communications 
and ceremonial and social matters. Diplomatic representatives 
abroad have special privileges among them, protection while travel¬ 
ing on land and sea, exemption from criminal and civil processes at 
all times, and a residence inviolate. Appointments are often made 
as rewards for political service. 

The Consular representation is divided into three classes. (1) 
Consuls—General-at-large, who travel around the world inspecting 
U. S. consulates. (2) Consuls-General, who have charge of all con¬ 
sulates of particular countries and (3) Consuls who are stationed 
at innumerable places around the world. 

Since 1906, the Consular service has been taken from the “spoils 
system,” and examinations both oral and written are required. 

The number in the service is about 700, and it is understood of 
course, that for every such official sent to foreign countries, one is 
sent to the United States. New York has consuls from nearly fifty 
countries, Chicago from more than thirty. Italy has sent the larg¬ 
est number to the United States. 

Foreign Policies. The Monroe Doctrine “The American con¬ 
tinents are not to be considered as subjects for future colonization 
by European powers,” has been the most discussed until the League 
of Nations was drawn up at Versailles. Whatever else may be said, 
it is not denied that Germany depended upon the advice construed 
from Washington’s address concerning “entangling alliances,” and 
also the “splendid isolation” of the United States contemplated by 
early political theorists, when she plunged the world into the inde¬ 
scribably terrible war of 1914-. After the Lusitania was “blown 
up,” the United States went to war with Germany, just as was done 
with Spain some years ago after the Maine was “blown up.” When 
the Spanish war was over, Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippines were 
cared for by the United States. What will be its policy now con¬ 
cerning Armenia, Korea and other helpless nations? 

52 


churches of America, its Red Cross are doing what they 
C a' wo Missionaries and organized workers in the Y. W. C. A 
ana W. C 1. U. have limited means and are under the handicap of 
commercial selfishness oftimes. P 


The Hague Tribunal has been of some value, but something 
stronger seems to be needed, when the ruler, Nicholas II of Russia, 
who issued the call for its greatest Conference was murdered by his 
subjects, and the agreement as to the rights of neutrals was called 
and considered a “scrap of paper.” 


. . present time and the coming year will see many changes 

m international affairs, for the whole world is passing through a 
revolution m government and policy. 


LESSON EIGHT. 

The Government and the Child. 

As never before in the world’s history, the child is now an 
object of governmental interest and care. The dreadful world war 
has. brought into the limelight what has always been true, that a 
nation’s continuance, its very life, depends upon its children. Hence 
the nations of Europe and of the two American continents are now 
governmentally concerned about children, not only their number, 
but also their development in body, mind and morale—the new war- 
made word for soul or spirit. 

The U. S. government left all questions concerning the child 
to the separate states, until three discoveries were made. (1) That 
many children were toilers in factories and shops and thus denied 
the opportunities for growth permitted to the children of less civi¬ 
lized lands, which have no factories and sweatshops. (2) That 
education above the grades was planned for the comparatively few 
who enter the professions and not for the many who live by the 
work of their hands. (3) That the number of physically and men¬ 
tally defective children was steadily increasing. 

In 1912, the first definite federal legislation created a Children’s 
Bureau in the Department of Labor—a significant fact in itself— 
with a woman, Julia C. Lathrop, as its chief—another significant 
fact. The function of this Bureau was purely educational, but it 
did its work so well, that several states enacted Child Labor Laws, 
and finally in September 1916, a federal law was passed, to become 
effective one year later, September, 1917. Its constitutionality was, 
however, soon attacked, and after being operative and remedial for 
thirteen months, the U. S. Supreme Court in October, 1918, declared 
it unconstitutional. 

Before the end of the year, the Pomerene amendment to a 
Revenue law was passed by Congress, placing a ten percent tax on 
the entire net profits of persons or corporations “operating (a) any 
mine or quarry situated in the United States in which children under 
the age of sixteen years have been employed or permitted to work 
during any portion of the taxable year; or, (b) any mill, cannery, 
workshop, factory, or manufacturing establishment situated in the 
United States in which children under the age of fourteen years 
have been employed or permitted to work more than eight hours in 

53 



any day or more than six days in any week, or after the hour of 
seven o’clock P. M. or before the hour of six o’clock A. M. during 
any portion of the taxable year.” In this law, workshop means any 
room or place. This law is operative ,but its constitutionality is 
pending in the U. S. Supreme Court. 

Meanwhile in order to assist the states trying to change their 
one-view-point educational systems, Congress enacted in February, 
1917, the much discussed Smith-Hughes measure giving federal aid 
to states providing vocational education. The government had 
been giving both land and money for a long time for agricultural 
education in the states. 

Realizing the importance of child conservation, the government 
soon after war was declared, asked the Councils of Defense to form 
child welfare branches of its service in the states, and the nation 
had a “baby year” in which all kinds of baby survey work was done 
The Junior Red Cross was organized in the public schools, the Boy 
Scout movement was recognized and endorsed, the national Public 
Health Service department co-operated with state and local agencies, 
and finally in May, 1919, a Children’s Bureau Conference on Child 
Welfare Standards was held in Washington at the request of the 
President of the United States. 

Foreign representatives from Belgium, France, Great Britain, 
Italy, Japan and Serbia counseled with many American authorities 
and definite minimum standards were adopted. (1) For the age, 
education, physical condition, hours of employment, wage and place¬ 
ment conditions for children entering employment. (2) For the 
protection of mothers in providing prenatal care; for infants, pre¬ 
school, school and adolescent children. (3) For the care of defec¬ 
tive, delinquent and dependent children. Home instead of institu¬ 
tional care was stressed. Childplacing, rural social work, recrea¬ 
tion, the juvenile court, and the illegitimate children problem were 
all considered, and two recommendations were made, (a) For all 
possible co-operation in securing definite scientific information and 
(b) for child welfare legislation. As a means for both these ends, 
governors of states were asked to appoint commissions to study 
child welfare problems in the states, and a national conference 
called by the President was also requested. 

The report containing the standards adopted is valuable and 
can be obtained from the Children’s Bureau at Washington. 

The Public Health Service, a bureau of the Treasury Depart¬ 
ment is working with state health agencies for the physical better¬ 
ment of the child. The Childrens’ Bureau, of the Labor Depart¬ 
ment of the U. S., is working through all state agencies, especially 
Child Welfare committees, for the physical, mental and moral bet¬ 
terment of the child. 

With so many agencies willing and anxious to work, the Child 
Welfare state organizations under the National Bureau, the Public 
Health organizations, also with a national head, the Red Cross in 
both Home Service and Junior branches and all the woman organi¬ 
zations having departments willing to co-operate, the poorly fed, 
overworked, health hampered, recreationless, generally neglected 
and unhappy child ought to disappear in the United States. The 
American father with the saloon and liquor eliminated from his 

54 


hfe m a y by reason of such savings so care for his children, that some 
child welfare agencies may ere long be- unecessary. 


LESSON NINE. 

Questions Before Congress. Americanization. National Budget. 

Perhaps no sessions of the American Congress has ever had 
more vital questions before it, than those of 1919. The League of 
Nations, the peace treaty, the attempt to solve the high cost of liv¬ 
ing, the great industrial problems and many others might be con¬ 
sidered, but only two are possible in this lesson. 

A great question is facing the nation. Will the third genera¬ 
tion be American ? It is not necessary to learn or to try to learn 
immigration facts and figures. If women use eyes and ears, they 
must see over stores, in newspapers, even in lists of city government 
officials many foreign names; and they cannot but hear on the 
streets, trains and trollies and in the stores foreign tongues. And 
the children everywhere! 

Nor is it necessary to discuss the relation of the immigrant to 
labor. Our great industries, among them the steel mills and the 
coal mines, are examples of the present situation in the United 
States. How can American standards of Labor be protected, our 
national institutions be safeguarded, and all nations be justly and 
fairly treated is the threefold question facing Americans. 

In the first place, we must take care of the foreigners already 
here, teach the adults as well as the children, appreciate their good 
qualities, all have some, make them want to be American citizens, 
see to it that they are, or send them back to the country which they 
prefer to love more. As a rule, heretofore, adult foreigners have 
had instruction from Americans in only two things, corrupt politics 
and sharp business methods. Higher standards for naturalization 
to be attained by education must be insisted upon. Foreigners 
should be able to read American newspapers, to understand that 
liberty of action is not license to do wrong and also that a woman’s 
position in America is far different from that of many—not all 
foreign lands. One effective way of making this fact known is the 
separation of a wife’s citizenship from that of her husband. Her 
citizenship should depend upon her own, not her husband’s, quali¬ 
fications. 

In the second place, our present immigration laws are totally 
inadequate, are not right even in principle. Fortunately for the 
women who want to be informed on the immigration problem a large 
group of intelligent American citizens, known as the National Com¬ 
mittee for Constructive Immigration (office 105 E. 22nd St., New 
York City) has been studying the problem for a number of years 
“in its domestic and international bearings.” Amendments to the 
present laws for immigration and naturalization have been drafted 
and discussed in six “hearings” in June, 1919, before the Commit¬ 
tee on Immigration and Naturalization of the House of Represen¬ 
tatives. The House was urged to prepare its own bill on these sug¬ 
gested principles; regulation*of the rate of immigration, registra¬ 
tion, distribution, education for citizenship and adequate protec- 

55 



ton of aliens, higher standards for naturalization and equal treat¬ 
ment for all peoples. “For the administration of the above meas¬ 
ures the National Committee proposes that Congress shall establish 
an Immigration Commission to consist of the Secretary of Labor, 
the Secretary of Commerce, and a third man to be appointed by the 
President, with specific instructions and powers for dealing with 
immigration matters.” 

In addition to the missionary societies of the churches, other 
womens’ organizations have been interested in the situation for a 
number of years. A former president of the General Federation of 
Women’s Clubs, a woman of far vision, urged four years ago every 
club woman to place a foreign family on her visiting list. She knew 
what the result would be for the American visitor—an intelligent 
and dynamic interest in the whole alien question. The Woman’s 
Christian Temperance Union has had its department of Work among 
Foreigners for many years. Perhaps no better co-operative service 
could be devised at present than membership—no prescribed dues, 
only voluntary contributions—in the Committee named above. Its 
pamphlets, giving statistics, charts and program are valuable. 

Whatever amendments to the present laws Congress may make 
the intelligent co-operation of American women for their en¬ 
forcement will be necessary to hasten the solution of the problem. 
War-time restriction to immigration will doubtless continue until 
there is scientific and adequate legislation by Congres.s 

A Budget System for the National Government. 

A great thinker once said “The love of money is the root of all 
evil.” It is admitted that there are some things not good in our 
national government, and a final analysis might take all of them 
back to “the love of money.” One thing is apparent, however, a 
growing dissatisfaction with the system or rather lack of system 
in the use of money by Congress. Women are reading and heeding 
the “thrift propaganda of the United States Treasury Department, 
urging among other things a household budget. At the same time, 
they are wondering why the government itself has no budget, and 
permits Congress to vote appropriations originating in about thirty 
(30) different committees, without the slightest plan or supervi¬ 
sion. There are more than 700,000 persons in the employ of the 
government, and billions, it used to be millions, of dollars are spent 
each year. Some one has said: “The taxpayers are entitled to get a 
full dollars’ worth for their money. The government is nothing but 
a huge corporation in which the taxpayers are the stockholders and 
it is the duty of the management to return the largest possible 
dividends.” 

Several budget methods have been suggested. A former presi¬ 
dent, Mr. Taft, has suggested that Congress pass a law requiring 
the President to submit a budget for all departments of government, 
with power to reduce the estimates of expenses furnished by the 
heads of departments. He advises also that the President suggest 
the measures for raising the necessary revenue. 

Another plan providing for the establishment of a budget bu¬ 
reau, has passed the House and is before the Senate. Its provisions 

56 


^ ollows: “ A11 departments must submit estimates to the 
budget bureau for approval before being sent to Congress; an in¬ 
dependent audit of all department accounts is provided with a comp¬ 
troller and assistant comptroller appointed by the President to con¬ 
duct the audit, and abolishment of the present auditors and con¬ 
solidation of their work under the comptroller.” 

Another plans a budget committee in Congress itself, and it is 
more than probable that this long needed reform will soon take place 
by definite Congressional enactment. 


LESSON TEN. 

Political Parties. Woman Suffrage. 

Representative Democracies—Republics —are governed by poli¬ 
tical parties. . The United States had them early in its history. While 
the constitution was in the making, there were heated arguments 
concerning strong or limited-in-power central government, and the 
first terms used were Federalists and anti-Federalists. Then both 
took the word Republican, the Federalists prefixing to it the word 
National and the anti-Federalists the word Democrat which ere long 
became the party’s sole and distinctive name. The Federalists 
were known as Whigs-National Republicans until they united with 
the Freesoilers and most Abolitionists in 1856, when the name Re¬ 
publican was taken. Besides these two leading parties, there have 
been others, among them the Socialist and Prohibitionist. 

The Democratic party until recent years, has advocated state 
sovereignty and tariff for revenue only, the Republican party a 
strong federal government and tariff for protection of industries. 
But changes in economic conditions, industries in the south, and 
more recently the war problems have caused confusion in political 
creeds, and the platforms to be made in the summer of 1920 are 
awaited with keen interest. 

The Socialists whose platforms ask for many economic and 
political changes even to the revision of the U. S. Constitution, have 
been sharply and hopelessly split asunder by the propaganda and 
deeds of the radical branch. 

The long struggling Prohibitionists to their own and almost 
everybody’s amazement and satisfaction have come out of the war- 
caused political chaos with their ideal realized, namely prohibition 
of the liquor traffic a part of the Federal constitution. 

Many forces besides the third-party Prohibitionists had been 
working many years to this end. The Woman’s Christian Temperance 
Union’s work included the children, for their faith was strong that 
the children of one generation, taught concerning the evils of alcohol 
would become men and women of the next generation, ready and 
willing to work for the prohibition of the liquor traffic. And in 
time, a new temperance organization, the Anti-Saloon League—non¬ 
partisan—did appear, and began to work in a methodical, logical, 
practical and political manner to elect “dry” men of both great poli¬ 
tical parties to state and national legislatures. The League depend¬ 
ed upon the temperance men and women in the churches for its 
financial support, and upon the women of the W. C. T. U. for both 

57 



moral and financial support and especially for circulating its ef¬ 
fective petitions—a no easy task—and grew in power. The liquor 
forces strongly organized and working largely in politics through 
a hyphenated organization, the German-American Alliance, cor¬ 
rupted politics to such an extent, that thoughtful citizens began to 
see serious political dangers ahead. The Prohibitionists and White 
Ribboners continued faithfully, and often heroically to present their 
facts, arguments and ideals through the press and platform. The 
church organizations began to work also through temperance 
Boards, and in time ten (10) states became “dry.” Then came the 
great war. The United States looked on and prospered financially 
for nearly three years, during which time nine (9) more states went 
“dry.” But in April, 1917, the United States could no longer stay 
out of the war, and with no trained army and all the allies depend¬ 
ing upon her for food entered the struggle “to make the world safe 
for democracy.” Realizing that sobriety was absolutely necessary, 
if her military forces were to be speedily efficient, the navy and 
training camps were soon made “dry.” Ships, munitions and food 
were demanded, and the nation soon realized that grain, coal and 
transportation could not be wasted on whiskey and beer. The gov¬ 
ernment found also that it could not meet the demands and emer¬ 
gencies of the war with drunken men anywhere in its civilian forces 
and the wartime prohibition measure was passed in July, 1917. In 
a short time the public as never before began to realize that if the 
U. S. government could not do its work efficiently in war times 
because of intemperance, then intemperance was a national evil at 
all times. 

So when the temperance forces, united in a Dry Federation, a 
great host in Washington and demanded prohibition in December, 
1917, Congress adopted a resolution submitting to the states a pro¬ 
hibition amendment to the federal Constitution. Within thirteen 
months, on January 16, 1919, thirty-eight states had ratified, seven 
more quickly followed, leaving only three opposed to it. 

The eighteenth amendment to the Federal constitution becomes 
operative on January 16, 1920, and says in its second section, “Con¬ 
gress and the several states shall have concurrent power to enforce 
this article by appropriate legislation.” The appropriate legislation 
measure has been enacted. It defines “intoxicating liquor” as any¬ 
thing “by whatever name called, containing one-half of one per- 
centum or more of alcohol by volume, which is fit for beverage pur¬ 
poses.” The code is under three titles each with a number of sec¬ 
tions and the power of enforcing it is entrusted to “revenue and 
other officers charged with enforcing criminal laws.” 

But to return to political parties, Republics are governed 
through political parties, and political parties must therefore be 
organized, have machinery, so-called, because there must be effi¬ 
cient co-operation of all political units, and under direction of men 
chosen for the purpose. Party Organization consists of the chair¬ 
men and committees of political units, national, state, congress¬ 
ional district, county and precinct. These MEN practically (1) 
nominate in (a) primaries, or (b) conventions the candidates for 
public office, (2) make in conventions the party platforms, (3) 
direct the campaigns (excepting in independent press), (4) are in 

58 


eharge at the polling precincts on election day, and (5) only too 
otten dictate the official acts of the successful candidates during 
term of office.. Primaries are elections (under state statute) held 
m some states in the spring of election years for the (a) nominations 
of candidates for office, (b) the election of precinct party organi¬ 
zation officers and also delegates to the conventions succeeding the 
primary. 

. Conventions are “called” in succession by chairmen, beginning 
with the highest unit, the national, and ending with the precinct. 
They are held also in succession, but in reverse order to the “calls” 
for they begin in the precinct primary or “caucus” in the spring 
and end in the great national conventions held in June or July. In 
these conventions the accredited delegates from lower political 
units (1) nominate the officers for government of that unit and 
dent is nominated and the “platform” takes final verbal shape. 

All the nominations have now been made for the officers of the 
governmental units from the lowest up to the President, the great 
party organizations are manned from precinct to the powerful na¬ 
tional chairmen and committees, the principles have been set be¬ 
fore the whole country by the press, and the “campaign” is on. Poli¬ 
tical, mass meetings are held with parades of voters, speeches by 
candidates, their friends and sometimes the party organization men, 
in which party platforms are discussed, many historical precedents 
quoted, and party promises made. The press of the nation has a 
great part, perhaps the greatest, for it reaches practically every 
voter which a speechmaker cannot do. As the election day in No¬ 
vember approaches, the interest and excitement increases and there 
is much speculation as to the “independent” and “floating” vote, the 
former referring to the best class of citizenship as a rule, and the 
latter to the worst. 

Perhaps no election heretofore held has had so many elements 
of uncertainty in it as the coming election of 1920. Government 
ownership, immigration, foreign policies, military training, budget 
system for national expenditures, labors part in industry are some 
of the questions to be settled finally by the vote at the thousand 
upon thousands of polling places in this great country. They will 
not be settled perhaps by one election, but they will eventually, by 
the Americanization process. 

Because of the American voters' growing intelligence and in¬ 
terest in government, elections are cleaner, political “bosses” are 
not so much in evidence as they were even a few years ago. It is 
generally conceded that the rapidly increasing woman's vote will 
demand “good principles, good men, good government.” In 1916, 
the women of thirteen states voted for the President, Wyoming, 
Colorado, Idaho, Utah, Washington, California, Arizona, Kansas, 
Oregon, Alaska, Montana, Nevada, and Illinois. All of these states 
had full suffrage except Illinois. Since 1916, four more states have 
obtained full suffrage, New York (1917), Oklahoma, Michigan and 
South Dakota in 1918. Sixteen in all. In addition to Illinois, North 
Dakota, Nebraska, Vermont and Tennessee have received the 
presidential and municipal franchise. Five states in all. Seven have 
obtained presidential suffrage, Rhode Island, Indiana, Iowa, Maine. 
Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin. Seven in all. In two states, 

59 


Arkansas and Texas, women vote in the primaries, in which nomi¬ 
nation in the dominant party means election. 

In nine other states, women have school and tax suffrage, Ken¬ 
tucky, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, 
Connecticut, Deleware, Louisiana and New Mexico. Hence women 
have full suffrage in sixteen states, partial suffrage in five, presi¬ 
dential alone in seven, primary in two, school and tax in nine. Wo¬ 
men can vote, more or less, in 39 of the 48 states. In the coming 
1920 election, whatever the ratification situation may be, the women 
of 30 states will vote for president, with all that it means of power 
and influence at Washington. Why women did not ask for . this 
power years ago will always be a mystery to those advocating it. For 
the U. S. Constitution says, “Each state shall appoint, in such man¬ 
ner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors 
equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives.” There¬ 
fore no state constitution can take away what the federal constitu¬ 
tion says can be given by state Legislatures. 

The Federal suffrage amendment granting full suffrage to all 
women of the United States is now before the state legislatures for 
ratification. Of the necessary 36, the following 17 have ratified 
(Oct. 1, 1919): Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Kansas, New York, 
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Arkan¬ 
sas, Montana, Nebraska, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Utah. 
When others will ratify depends upon the time of their legislative 
sessions. It is earnestly hoped that special sessions may be called 
for this purpose. Eleven (11) of those which have not yet ratified 
are full suffrage states, and their favorable action is of course only 
a question of time. The only states which have voted against rati¬ 
fication up to the present time are Georgia and Alabama, and as 
one vote is not final, a later session of their Legislatures may ratify. 

Suffrage for women, participation in government will soon be 
world-wide and what will be the result ? Time alone can tell. The 
responsibility rests upon women as never before in the history of 
the world. It must not be forgotten however, that history records 
over and over again the fact that when governments, even those of 
democratic type had been strong and powerful and then began to 
decline, their rich women began the disintegrating process. From 
the “ivory couches” and “wine in bowls” of the women of Samaria 
nearly 3000 years ago down through all the centuries to the card 
playing Venetian women and later to the women of France so 
ignorant and ill-informed that the queen advised “cake” when told 
there was no “bread for the hungry,” it is the same story, govern¬ 
ment destroyed, because in the hands of men influenced by ease 
loving, careless, irresponsible women blind to the real conditions 
around them. If they had had a direct part in government, if all 
women had been with the men responsible for it, the story might 
have been different. Will twentieth century democracies endure? 
Their women will decide the question. 


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MEMORANDA 


































































